Published: June 3, 2025
Table of Contents
What is "Eat the Frog"?
"Eat the Frog" is a productivity strategy that involves tackling your most challenging or important task first thing in the morning. The concept comes from Mark Twain's famous quote: "Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day."
Why It Works
- Leverages peak mental energy early in the day
- Prevents procrastination on important tasks
- Creates momentum for the rest of the day
- Reduces anxiety about difficult tasks
- Ensures critical work gets done regardless of distractions
How to Implement It
- Each evening, identify your "frog" for the next day
- Make this your most important/challenging task
- Schedule it as your first work activity the next morning
- Protect this time from interruptions and distractions
- Work on only this task until it's completed
Pro Tip
Combine with the Pomodoro Technique for your frog task - break it into 25-minute focused intervals with short breaks.
Identifying Your Frog
Your "frog" should be:
- The task with the biggest impact on your goals
- Something you've been avoiding or procrastinating on
- A task that requires deep focus and concentration
- Something that would make the biggest difference if completed
"Eating the frog transformed my productivity. By tackling my hardest task first, I feel accomplished by 9 AM and the rest of the day feels easier." - Emily S., Austin