Many years ago I worked at a company, where we had to do a lot of outbound cold calls. We were on the phone most of the day, dialling one number after the other. We aimed to establish a foothold in a new market and that meant a lot of proactive outreach.

Those were stressful times, and I never particularly enjoyed this task. But, there was a valuable lesson that I learned during that period: “Eat the frog in the morning.”

This is what our management repeated over and over. Eat the frog in the morning. It means doing the most difficult task, or the one you like the least as the first thing each day. And it makes sense. Think about it.

Giving in to the temptation of procrastination or opting for easier tasks seems a comfort at first. But, deep down, the knowledge that the difficult task still awaits can cause unease and stress.

To achieve the frog approach, I would block 2 hours in the morning for the most difficult tasks. I would not schedule any meetings and keep distractions to a minimal. Two hours of focused work can work wonders.

As a result, I was more relaxed and even felt a sense of accomplishment throughout the rest of the day.

Embracing the eat the frog method, showed me that even the most difficult tasks can be tackled. That even when times get tough, there is a way to structure your day.

Which frog will you eat tomorrow morning?

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