We’ve had a bit of a thing about frogs in our house for quite some time now – 15 years to be precise.
It began with our Eldest daughter, J1. As many of you know, aged 5 months she was diagnosed with a brain tumour. She was unable to sit unaided or walk, and as a result spent a fair amount of her time in those very early years (pre wheelchairs) lying on the floor. There were a lot of things she couldn’t do, but there were also a few things she COULD do that I don’t think many other little girls could… this is where the “frog” bit comes in. Because she was our first child, we didn’t realise just how supple/double jointed J1 was until others commented. When she lay down, instead of stretching her legs out straight, they would lie automatically in a frog position, splayed out from the hips. Then, she would lift one of her legs (the right I recall) right up in the air, then down again, to rest it BESIDE HER HEAD ON THE PILLOW. How many of you can do that??? She would actually go to sleep in that position, her tiny foot (she had very small feet) on the pillow beside her. In fact, because of the limited use of her left hand, her right foot almost became like another hand to her, and she would happily keep herself amused dangling toys between her toes.
So we began to affectionately call her “Froggy Legs”, or “Frogget” for short. Frogs weren’t quite as trendy or plentiful as they seem to be now-a-days, so if we came across a toy or item of clothing with a frog emblazoned on it, we would get quite excited. Needless to say, she had a number of things in her bedroom with frog influences (I hope she didn’t mind!)
Anyway, a little while ago when I was in the hairdressers leafing through magazines, I came across an article written by a life coach which recommended people read a book called “Eat That Frog!” As you can imagine, with our background in frogs, I took a second look. The book was written for people who procrastinate in life – that’s me!! I decided then and there (I didn’t procrastinate!!) to track the book down and buy it. The good thing is, I discovered that my siser-in-law already had a copy on her shelf, so reading it wouldn’t cost me a cent.
Well, I’ve read the book. Is it any good? Yeah, I think so. Admittedly it is aimed at the corporate type wanting to climb the ladder, make lots of money, and be “successful” – and my definition of “success” is possibly very different to that of this book’s author (Brian Tracy). But, that aside, most if not all of the stuff he has come up with (and he admits most of it is unoriginal) is really relevant to everyday life.
There are some great lines in there, like:
“An average person who develops the habit of setting clear priorities and getting important tasks completed quickly will run circles around a genius who talks a lot and makes wonderufl plans but gets very little done.”
“Successful people are those who are willing to delay gratification and make sacrifices in the short term so that they can enjoy far greater rewards in the long term. Unsuccessful people, on the other hand, think more about short-term pleasure and immediate gratification while giving little thought to the long-term future.”
“Identify your most important goal in life today… what one goal, if you achieved it, would have the greatest positive effect on your life? Ask yourself, “What sets the speed at which I accomplish this goal? Why don’t I have it already? What is it in me that is holding me back?” Whatever your answers, take action immediately. Do something. Do anything, but get started.”
“Plan every day in advance: think on paper. Every minute you spend in planning can save you five or ten minutes in execution.”
There are many more… you’ll have to read the book!!
Why is it called “Eat that Frog?” Because it encourages us procrastinators to think of our tasks as frogs, and we need to eliminate the most important ones (the big ugly frogs) first. We need to quickly swallow them first thing in the morning, get it over and done with. Most procrastinators spend too much time eating tadpoles and putting off eating frogs. True!
Has the book “changed my life”? Not quite!! But I have started to try to put some of the things into practice… and so far we have managed to tidy the shed – something I’ve been meaning to do for TWO YEARS. I’ve still got a long way to go. And I definitely don’t want to become so task focused at the expense of people – because this is already a weakness of mine. The other day I had made a “to do” list, and I surprised myself at how I was able to put the list to one side when someone turned up unexpectedly, knowing that there is always tomorrow.
I’m starting to babble, so better stop…. I have a whole list of things to get thru today!!!
