Eat the Frog Method

Overview

The "Eat the Frog" method is a time management and productivity technique that encourages you to identify your biggest, most challenging task each day—your "frog"—and complete it early in your workday before anything else. The term was coined by Brian Tracy in his 2001 book "Eat That Frog: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time."

Origin

The phrase originates from a quote often attributed to Mark Twain: "If it's your job to eat a frog, it's best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it's your job to eat two frogs, it's best to eat the biggest one first."

How It Works

1. Identify Your Frog: At the end of each workday, identify the most important, challenging, or unpleasant task for tomorrow
2. Do It First: Start your day by working on this task before checking email, attending meetings, or handling other work
3. Complete It: Focus exclusively on the frog until it's done—no multitasking or switching to easier tasks
4. Repeat Daily: Make this a consistent morning habit

Why It Works

You're most likely to have more energy and motivation in the mornings—about two hours after we wake up, we are at peak energy, focus, and motivation. Taking an "Eat the Frog" approach can lessen anxiety around cumbersome tasks and help you keep tabs on your top priorities without wondering late at night how you'll get it all done.

Choosing the Right Frog

Frog tasks generally take longer than average tasks—try to target tasks that take longer than one hour but no more than three hours, as anything longer should be broken down into smaller tasks. The frog should have the biggest positive impact on your goals if completed.

Combining with Other Techniques

The Eat the Frog method works well with:

• Timeboxing: Set a fixed period (like a 75-minute timebox) to work on your frog
• Deep Work: Schedule your frog during your natural focus time
• Time Blocking: Reserve an early morning block specifically for frog tasks

Common Challenges

• Choosing the wrong "frog" (tasks that aren't truly priorities)
• Breaking the morning frog habit when emergencies arise
• Selecting frogs that are too large (should be broken into smaller tasks)
• Getting distracted before completing the frog