Mark Twain said, ““Eat a live frog first thing in the morning and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.” Gina Trapani of Fast Company translates this sage advice into modern productivity parlance: Do your worst task first thing in the morning – the first thing you accomplish at work sets the tone for the rest of the day. She clarifies that by “worst” she means “most important” and the one that you are most likely to procrastinate on.
In a related article, Kevin Purdy samples a handful of well-known entrepreneurs to see how successful people spend the first hour of their work day. And here’s a hint: Some of those high performing people actually get the ball rolling the night before: What the most productive people do before bed.
More Productivity Tips from Mark Twain
Today’s productivity gurus have nothing on Mark Twain. Another sage bit of advice we like: “The secret of getting ahead is getting started. The secret of getting started is breaking your complex and overwhelming tasks into small manageable tasks, and then starting on the first one.” W. Briggs takes an entertaining look at 5 productivity tips from Mark Twain. And if this whets your appetite for even more wit and wisdom from Mark Twain, he has also gathered a slideshow of 17 Mark Twain Quotes for Leaders.
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