Name: Eat that Frog
ISBN: 9781609946784

Eat that Frog

There just isn't enough time for everything on our "to do" list -- and there never will be. Successful people don't try to do everything. They learn to focus on the most important tasks and make sure they get done. There's an old saying that if the first thing you do each morning is to eat a live frog, you'll have the satisfaction of knowing that it's probably the worst thing you'll do all day. Using "eat that frog" as a metaphor for tackling the most challenging task of your day -- the one you are most likely to procrastinate on but also probably the one that can have the greatest positive impact on your life -- this book shows you how to zero in on the critical tasks and organize your day. You'll not only get more done faster but get the right things done.

What Hacker News says

andaiMar 2026

Thanks for sharing, I love this :)

Yeah, so I only work "properly" for a few hours, and then I'd say I am gentle with myself the entire rest of the day. That's why I put all the "don't want to do, but need to get done" stuff in the first part. Then I'm chill for the rest of the day!

I got this idea from Brian Tracy's concept of "Eat That Frog" (and book of same title). "If you have to eat a live frog, it doesn't pay to sit around and look at it for very long."

I found the same principle applies in life in general. Once I've decided to do something I'm avoiding, I just have to jump into action right away, before the moment of hesitation can grow into a mountain of dread.

thread

mdp2021May 2023

There is plenty of literature, especially practical literature: an example can be "Eat that frog ... Stop procrastinating" from Brian Tracy. There are also related YT pieces, one sees from searching for "brian tracy procrastination".

Maybe you could benefit to refine your framework of practice (i.e., in a way, the "coaching" literature that spells out the beneficial attitudes)?

Because the direct reply would be "choice and discipline - you do things that you elected as priorities by actually doing them, "staying there" until satisfactory completion".

thread

jspashMar 2021

I read this in high school (mid 80's) and it has helped me ever since. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Eat-That-Frog-Important-Things/dp/1...

The advice is essentially; do the hardest thing on your todo list first and the rest is a breeze.

It's no magic bullet, and it still takes willpower. But if you persevere and it becomes as habit, you'll find yourself procrastinating less.

thread

smusamashahMay 2020

Read "Eat that Frog" by Brian Tracy. And as John Sonmez says, you don't even need to learn everything. Go straight towards exactly what you want to make, nothing more. E.g. instead of going throuz a to z of Rust, decide what you want to build with it and learn only what's necessary for it.

thread

yogeshpJun 2018

Recently I read the book - Eat that Frog by Brian Tracy.

One of point was to keep a pocket diary where you list all the TODO tasks and keep striking them off as they complete. Helped me in many ways:

1. It is very easy to forget many tasks but by writing them and checking the diary even once in a while, it is possible to be reminded regularly.

2. Its better than mobile TODO apps as I don't need to check mobile phone regularly and don't get distracted.

3. When you strike some things off, you see the progress that you are achieving something. Just deleting everything shows you long list of tasks yet to be done and can be demotivating.

https://www.amazon.com/Eat-That-Frog-Great-Procrastinating/d...

thread

loupradoMar 2017

Once you have sales and moderate growth you may lose the courage to continue growing and improving the company. Every decision has downside risk and the effort required keeps growing with each milestone. Without a co-founder or investors for motivation, it is easy to spend your time working like a low-level employee instead of a leader.

Knowing your goals and then spending time every day on the highest value, highest impact tasks is the job of a founder. This sentiment is captured in Brian Tracy's audiobook "Eat that Frog" which I highly recommend.

thread