Tried that viral "eat the frog" morning routine for a month and it backfired hard

So last month I hopped on that "eat the frog" trend where you do your hardest task first thing in the morning. Figured it would make my days feel less heavy. I'm a bartender so my mornings are free and I thought tackling my biggest errand or chore at 8am would leave me relaxed for the afternoon. But man after three weeks I felt burnt out and miserable. Hitting that tough stuff right away just made me dread waking up. So I switched it up and started doing an easy win first like just making my bed or a quick walk. Then I ease into the tougher stuff around 10 or 11. Way better. No more dreading the alarm. Anyone else tried these productivity trends and found they don't fit real life at all?

3 comments

3 Comments

williamw755d ago

Hold up, you did your taxes at 5am for a whole week? That's insane, I'd rather scrub a toilet with my toothbrush.

felixlane5d ago

Started doing that same thing years ago when I first read about it. Woke up at 5am for a week straight to do my taxes and clean the gutters. Felt like a champion for about three days. Then I just started hitting snooze and hiding from my responsibilities. My whole morning turned into a battle. Ended up stumbling into the opposite approach by accident. One morning I was too tired to do anything hard so I just sat on my porch and drank coffee for an hour watching the birds. Then I walked to the corner store for a donut. Felt so good I started doing it every day. Eventually I realized my brain needs that slow warm up. Same way you don't run a sprint when you first get to the gym. So now I do the soft stuff first, then the real work hits around 930 or 10. Productivity gurus would probably call me lazy but my bills get paid and I don't hate my mornings anymore. Glad you found what works for you. That whole eat the frog thing sounds great on a podcast but real life doesn't work in neat little boxes like that.

ward.anna5d ago

Counterpoint: maybe you just didn't push through the suck long enough. I did the frog thing for two years straight and yeah the first month was brutal but now I crush my hardest task before 7am and my whole day feels like coasting downhill.