In the realm of personal productivity, there are a number of ways to get more done. We’re all allotted the same amount of time each day, so why not make the most out of it? There are entire books written on productivity, weekly podcasts about it, and even businesses that have emerged from individual’s relentless pursuit to be more productive. So what is the best way to increase productivity throughout the day?
“Eating the frog” as Brian Tracy coined it, is the most important way to start this journey to a more freed up life. This is the practice of crossing off the most important task off our to-do list first. Not checking email when you get in, no chatting with co-workers for twenty minutes, not updating your Facebook to say, “Ugh, 3 meetings today… Yay, for Tuesdays! – feeling sarcastic” but getting right into our work and accomplishing something before the days begins to wear on us. Tim Ferriss, the man who wrote the 4-Hour Work Week/Body/Chef, believes and practices this and he “work(s) harder and smarter than probably anyone you’ve ever met.” He doesn’t just work smarter to have more time on his hands, he frees up his time to get more done in that same 24 hours.
What is great about this practice is that it seems simple on the surface, yet if we practice it we find out there’s much more to it. Below are a few things that “eating the frog” forces us to do:
1.) List our work
- If we aren’t organized, yet we want to be more productive, this is a great way to force ourselves to put our tasks on paper. If we can put our tasks on paper it will either give us a sense that we don’t have as much to do as we originally thought (OR we’ll have a panic attack after seeing how much it is – don’t worry Point 2 covers this). And when we don’t seem so overwhelmed we are more vigorous in our work.
2.) Prioritize our work
- Once we have all of our work on paper, we now have to prioritize it and determine what is important vs what is not. For example, the final touches on a presentation due tomorrow is a much higher priority than re-arranging the filing cabinets. Once this is realized, even the largest to-do lists become easier to manage because once we see that everything is not the highest priority, we are able to focus on what’s really important.
3.) Commit to plans aka goals
- We all know I love to have goals, and making plans for the following day is like making goals: We put something on paper, we commit to it, and we get it done the following day. This gives us a great sense of accomplishment when we cross off “Priority 1” from the to-do list and make it just a little bit shorter. This confidence sets the tone for our day and helps us elimiate distractions when we know we’ve got something those top priorities cross off the list. It becomes a routine to set a plan (aka goal) get to work as soon as we get it, and reward ourselves by crossing it off when we’re finished.
4.) Top priority is difficult
- The most important task for the day is NEVER easy. And if it is easy, we need to be challenged more in our work or start taking on more challenging projects that push us. When we prioritize we are forced to attack challenges head on that are not fun. When we can put ourselves in those uncomfortable situations and stop procrastinating we then can begin to grow in our profession. None of us have ever become better at our jobs or our sports because we relaxed, we have improved in difficult situations.
Resolves to put ourselves in those difficult situations each morning and watch your to-do list shrink and your productivity soar!
