It’s been happening a lot more lately than it used to. I hear myself say, “Well, I didn’t get to it, I’ll move it to tomorrow. I’ll definitely do it tomorrow.” I don’t think COVID helped with my need to procrastinate the more annoying tasks on my list, especially when I feel like the world around me is also moving at a slower pace. But I’ve noticed the anxiety of completing that task spreads and comes with me.
Well, this particular day last week, I said it out loud. I told Matt (our newly hired philosopher) that I had a huge annual task for the 401k to complete and I just keep creeping it down the calendar.
“You gotta swallow that frog.”
“What? What does that even mean?”
“It’s something my previous boss used to say. Something about doing important tasks and getting them out of the way.”
I started some research. The more you look, the more debate surrounds who actually said this and what was said, but for simplicity and nostalgia we will say that Mark Twain said it, and he said it like this:
“If you know you have to swallow a frog, swallow it first thing in the morning. If there are two frogs, swallow the biggest one first.” – Mark Twain
There’s been a bestselling book by Brian Tracy written on the subject. For Tracy, eating a frog is a metaphor for tackling your most challenging task—but also the one that can have the greatest positive impact on your life.
Matt was right. Passing my frog off on another day was doing nothing but spreading my anxiety about it as well as allowing it to cloud my thoughts the rest of the week. I buckled down. Got ‘er done and emailed my giant spreadsheet with three pages of directions. And I felt great. Even rang the baby bell to celebrate.
I challenge you to write down this week’s frogs and make a plan to check them off.
“It’s time to stop procrastinating and get more of the important things done! After all, successful people don’t try to do everything. They focus on their most important tasks and get those done. Go eat your frogs!”
Brittany Bleak leads LGA’s strategic marketing initiatives. She holds a Bachelor Degree in Journalism from the University of Nevada, Reno. Brittany is known for always challenging the status quo. Brittany joined the firm in 2013 as the Administrative Manager/Marketing Coordinator and managed the firm’s accounting, business management, and marketing. She assumed the Marketing Director position in 2016. Brittany is active in the Society for Marketing Professional Services serving on the SMPS Las Vegas Board of Directors for eight years. She was SMPS Las Vegas President in 2014 and currently is the Director of Communications.