Mark Twain said it, “If you eat the frog first thing in the morning, you’ll have it behind you for the rest of the day.” It’s a horrible thought, isn’t it? The thought of actually eating a frog, it’s not something high on my agenda, but somehow I don’t think that is what Mark Twain was referring to. A simple translation would be, “Get the worst over and done with first“.
So why is it that we rarely eat the frog first thing in the morning, is it simply the taste we don’t like or is it simply easier to keep the frog tucked away lurking in that dark muddy corner of the office? After all, we know we can keep it there until we absolutely have to deal with it.
Being productive and having the ability to be productive are two different things. You may have everything organised, your task lists, your reminders, your diary entries, you’ve scheduled emails, SMS and pop-up reminders. However, we can’t avoid the frog that is served up during the day by a client.
So if you get a frog served up during the day, schedule it for the following morning unless of course, the sky is going to fall if you don’t do it right that minute.
It’s important that you check it out in full before deciding the best way to eat it.
While you are in control of your day you still need to be flexible enough to deal with these extra frogs. Being flexible and being able to shift your workload up and down as you need is a must have for virtual assistants.
Of course, there is an upside to eating your frog first thing. Once you have, you feel pretty good about yourself. It sets the tone for the rest of your day. You become more motivated, confident and happy. It’s a win-win!
You can accomplish anything …
I’d love to hear how you deal with your frogs; leave a comment below.