5 Simple ‘Eat That Frog’ Techniques to Peak Productivity
Continuing the latest blog post, which you can find here, Let’s dive into 5 simple techniques from ‘Eat That Frog‘ by Brian Tracy, that make it easy for you to improve your consistency, get more done in less time and beat procrastination!
Find the link Amazon link to the book which is packed with information and easy to assimilate here.
Set the Table:
‘Only about 3% of adults have clear, written goals. These people accomplish five to ten times as much as people of equal or better education and ability’, Getting clarity on the task you want to achieve helps avoid great amounts reduce the chances of procrastination and gives you motivation. Here is an interesting piece of advice that I obtained from the book which says ‘Always think on paper‘. That may be a To-do list, journaling or mind map for ideas, your choice. This helps to figure out which is the frog of the day. Brian Tracy gives this note-worthy and straightforward 7 steps to achieve and set goals:
- Decide exactly what you want.
- Write it down.
- Set a deadline for your goal.
- Make a list of everything that you can think of that you are going to have to do to achieve your goal.
- Organize the list into a plan.
- Take action on your plan immediately.
- Resolve to do something every single day that moves you toward your major goal.
“One of the very worst uses of time is to do something very well that need not be done at all”
Eat That Frog
Apply the 80/20 Rule to Everything:
Practising this rule will take your productivity game to another level. From finishing every task on your To-Do list to re-ordering those tasks and taking up the tasks that bring you the most significant changes in your life, “how do I decide those tasks?” you say, By following the Pareto Principle after its founder, the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who first wrote about it in 1895. The principle states ‘In a society the top 20% of the people hold the most money and influence than the rest 80%’.
The principle can be applied to your To-do list for the day and figure out the 2 or 3 tasks that can be completed in the same amount of time as the rest of the tasks in the list but these give more results. there you have it your frogs. It seems easier to pick up the other (more effortless) tasks but ignore that thought.
“The most valuable tasks you can do each day are often the hardest and most complex. But the payoff and rewards for completing these tasks efficiently can be tremendous”
Eat That Frog
Practice the ABCDE Method Continually:
To put this method simply, divide your tasks of the day into 5 categories. As explained below. Always finish Frogs before you move on to Tadpoles. If there is more than one task that falls into the category ‘A’, assign names such as ‘A-1’, ‘A-2’, ‘A-3’ and so on.
- A being (Frogs): These are the most important tasks of the day, not doing them results in consequences.
- B being (Tadpoles): Tasks which failing to do them will result in mild consequences only.
- C being :Task that is easy and pleasant to do and has no consequences at all attached to it.
- D being: Delegatable task. must be delegated at all times, to focus time and energies on Frogs.
- E being: Task that can be eliminated, which doesn’t bring real changes to your life.
“When you develop the habit of concentrating on your ‘A-1’, most important activity, on eating your frog, you will start getting more done than any two or three people around you”
Eat That Frog
Slice and Dice the Task:
Two ways to slice and dice the task as prescribed by the book, to remove the fear of the task being unconquerable leading to procrastination are the ‘Salami slice‘ and ‘Swiss cheese‘ methods. Both methods take advantage of the desire we have to complete a task, once started, called ‘compulsion to closure’.
- Salami slice: Dice a big task into manageable small tasks and get the details sorted out. This will make sure there is less resistance to completing this piece of work( Eating one piece of Salami at a time) and motivate you to take up the next one. Because you feel happier and more empowered as you make progress with the tasks.
- Swiss cheese: Makes you feel less overwhelmed by adding small rest periods between each work session (ie punching a hole into a block of Swiss cheese). This method is an extension of the previous one but empowers you to handle large work by pacing the work sessions with breath time in between.
“When you start and finish a small piece of a task, you feel motivated to start and finish another part, and then another, and so on. Each small step forward energizes you”
Eat That Frog
Create Large Chunks of Time:
Cut down distractions or find not-so-productive time in the day and use it to accomplish tasks. Or create such chunks of time where you can work away without distraction and non-stop (and be surprised by the amount of work done). A suggestion that we all know but is ignored by many, is to use such time blocks in the early morning. Another idea by the Author is to use commute time. Nevertheless, this needs specific planning. With the help of an Appointment dairy nailing down this approach gets manageable.
“One of the keys to high levels of performance and productivity is for you to make every minute count. Use travel and transition time, what
Eat That Frog
is often called ‘gifts of time’ to complete small chunks of larger tasks”
Write to me in the comment section below about which method you would like to try first. I am always looking forward to hearing from you.
Until next time 🙂
