Instead of ‘Eating the Frog,’ Use the 10-Minute Rule to Be More Productive

A popular productivity method encourages you to start your day with “eat the frog” – that is, tackling the largest and most important task of the day first, then moving on to the less important tasks in succession. For many, structure their to-do list around their biggest responsibility is a good way to stay motivated and ensure that top priorities are addressed quickly.

But not everyone functions better this way. I know not. Even for people who usually do likes to tackle difficult things first, not every day it’s the same. If you find the prospect of tackling a large project first thing in the morning – every day or just today – intimidating, there are other ways to organize your schedule. The following two rules can help you.

Start your day with the 10 minute rule

The 10-minute rule was invented by time management expert Clare Evans, who included it in a review of “anti-sad tips.” Here’s the bottom line: Think about activities that don’t energize you or excite you, but also don’t take up a lot of time. Reply to emails. Make a grocery list. Organize your office. Complete the documents. You can probably knock out each one in 10 minutes or less, but it’s tedious.

So do all your “10 minute tasks” immediately. The theory behind why this is helpful is similar to the theory behind the concept of “eating the frog”: once you complete these tasks, you will feel a sense of accomplishment and be well-positioned to take on additional responsibilities.

Of course, when you TO DO choose to eat the frog, you will feel motivated and proud, and that will It will be easier to get through the lighter lifts on your list, but that’s not always the case. Sometimes you’re too bogged down to tackle something big. Other times, doing one big thing will drain your energy and focus you enough that those small tasks seem much more important than they should.

In these cases, the 10 minute rule might be a better option. Working quickly on the simple things first won’t waste your energy or deplete all your resources, and will still give you a sense of accomplishment that can keep you going.

I’m a big believer in this approach, especially for tasks I don’t enjoy at all, like cleaning. In my version, I keep a constantly updated note on my phone that contains small tasks I need to do, which I enter whenever I think of them or notice them. These are usually things like “clean the fan” or “wipe the baseboards.” Just writing them down helps me keep them in mind, so even if I’m lacking motivation or time at the moment, I always have a list to refer to. Then when I think of one or check my list, I jump on it. After that, I work on the “yet” trick, which involves asking yourself if you can do “one more” thing every time you finish something small. The answer is usually yes, and as you go through the list of additional tasks, you become more and more motivated.

The “one minute rule” is even simpler

There is an even simpler method, conceptualized by Gretchen Rubin in her book The Happiness Project. It’s similar to the 10-minute rule, but not as structured. In short, if something takes you a minute or less to accomplish, you should do it as soon as you realize it needs to be done. I mentioned that I keep my 10-minute tasks in a note, but since becoming familiar with Rubin’s technique, I’ve started trying to eliminate my 1-minute projects as soon as I think of them or notice them. It helps. Emails do not go unanswered. The table is never in desperate need of wiping. Small actions lead to big improvements, which builds motivation.

This rule is especially helpful to me when it comes to signing important documents, a simple thing that I can do quickly, but often end up putting off and then forgetting to do altogether. I recently tried something new: as soon as I see the request (which can appear on my computer, iPhone, and/or Apple Watch), I stop whatever I’m doing, open it, finish the Docusign, send it back, and continue with my day. Nothing to remember to come back to later, and minimal interruption to my workflow now.

This is the heart of Rubin’s Rule: If you can actually cross an item off your list in less than 60 seconds, do it. Yes, this goes against other productivity methods, which emphasize limit distractions And rigidly block your schedule. But not everything in life always fits neatly into a perfect, pre-established structure – just like it doesn’t make sense to start each day with that metaphorical frog bite.

There is another version of this rule, the two-minute rule, which works the same way. I will caution, however, that don’t get too hung up on whether something takes one, two, or 10 minutes. Don’t overthink these strategies until you are in a state of decision paralysis. Trust yourself to recognize which tasks can easily be accomplished instantly, which ones may take 10 minutes but need to be completed ASAP, and which ones will be more onerous. If you’re having trouble, try a task prioritization technique like the MIT, which helps you rank your responsibilities based on the impact they will have on your life, or the Eisenhower Matrix, which organizes them by urgency.