Eat A Live Frog

“Eat a live frog every morning, and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.”-Mark Twain.

How true is this?  Of course, I’m not advocating for live frog consumption, but if we deem the thing we least look forward to our first challenge/accomplishment of every day, how much better will the rest of the day feel?

So, I’ve had varying live frogs at different points in my life.  I’ve had:

• Read my Bible.
• Read at all.
• Exercise.
• Prayerful meditation.
• Day/Week planning.
• Clean bathrooms (Yes, even that).

This list goes on and on, but there’s something I have realized over time.  The concept is absolutely true!  Setting priorities based on complexity and what’s easiest to accomplish can work in some scenarios.  Take our friend Dave Ramsey, for example.  When working through his Financial Peace University a few years ago, we decided that the best way to get out from under a myriad of debts was to start paying of the smaller ones first.  It accomplished something, made us feel good that we were working toward a goal, and lessened the number of bills we owed.  Now, we could have listed out our debts by interest rate we were paying, and worked down the highest ones first, but it felt more significant to get rid of an entire debt first.  It worked.  There is no substitute for that feeling of accomplishment.

On the flip side, the chore we dread most, that we have been putting off for days, week, months, or even years, is due to be promoted.  It’s time to give that frog a name and eat it.

AND, there’s no replacing the feeling you get when you start your day with that live frog.  For me, it works best if I can define that frog the night before.  I cannot wait until that morning to define my frog (I tend to choose a smaller frog in the heat of decision).  Do it.  Start tomorrow.  Decide tonight what you’ve been putting off that you can do first thing tomorrow.

It may be at home, and it may be sitting under that stack of papers on your desk.  In any case, wait no more.

If you’ve started eating your daily frogs, I want to hear about it.  How is it working?