‘Eat the Frog’ is a productivity technique, coined after Mark Twain was quoted saying: “If it’s your job to eat a frog, it’s best to do it first thing in the morning. And if it’s your job to eat two frogs, it’s best to eat the biggest one first.”
But for most of us, including me, eating frogs just isn’t that appealing…
I have a frog to eat today
Looming since the start of May
I fear if I don’t tuck in soon
The calendar will flip to June
First things first, I must decide
If what I want for tea resides
Inside my fridge – alas it’s empty!
I’ll shop to make sure that there’s plenty
After the shops I take a stroll
Enjoy the sun – that’s now my goal
I want the time to stand and stare
To feel the light breeze in my hair
A building stands across the way
Its clock cries out the time of day
I google its long history
Intriguing it turns out to be
Now I’m back, I must crack on
But first there’s housework to be done
I ponder on the perfect track
To listen to while dishes stack
What’s that? New stories! Now I scroll
Down the web’s deep rabbit hole
And then a friend pops round to see
If I’d like to come round for tea
My task I am yet to begin
Do I lack the discipline?
Of those whose hacks seem so seductive
Eating frogs to stay productive
My day is met with consternation
Denial, guilt, justification
My hopes for future me so high
Past me unwilling to comply
But look how much I’ve done meanwhile
My flowers are arranged with style
At last I even did some dusting
(the bookcase top was quite disgusting)
I cleared my inbox, half so far
I’ve done my laundry, washed the car
A lot of things, I guess it’s true,
I didn’t really need to do
But now I’m set, I must not roam
But maybe I could… write a poem?
For now my frog will have to wait
I simply must procrastinate
Laura writes... 