Added on September 2, 2018 Julia Lucio

No, I’m not gonna eat that frog…

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First off, frogs are gross. And although their legs may be considered a delicacy by some people–heck, I’ve even enjoyed them from time to time–my mother always told me not to play with them. They can give disease. These animals frequently carry bacteria called Salmonella that can cause serious illness in people. But I procrastinate…

Why am I talking about frogs? There’s an old saying that hints that if you eat a live frog first thing each morning, you’ll have the satisfaction of knowing that it’s probably the worst thing you’ll do all day. This is a metaphor, of course, and no, the author of the book “Eat that frog!” is not suggesting to literally eat a live frog every morning, but he does suggest getting the thing you are dreading doing the most, out of the way first.

In theory, this may all sound fine and dandy, but in practice, I tend to disagree. People are not all created equal.

There is a reason I am a procrastinator. I perform best when I feel pressured. My best creations always arise from tight time constraints, my most prideful missives are a result of the squeezing of my creative juices. So when I am working on a dreaded task, on something that sucks the life out of me, that pressure is even more essential.

I have mastered the art of procrastinating too. Deadlines have become a tool that I like to use to enhance my performance. Drugs are absolutely superfluous, adrenaline is all I need. Ask anyone who knows me, they will tell you that I am at my best when pushing the boundaries.

And this rings true in all areas of my life, whether it is for work, cleaning the house or even travel planning, my most precious masterpieces are always birthed out of a clock running out of time.

So with all due respect to Brian Tracy, I’ll keep on eating the small bugs that hang around that frog first, those small flies that keep me going without necessarily sustaining me. I call them the little appetizers of life. They sharpen my appetite, getting it ready for the main course.

I will keep on banishing that frog out of my sight, hide it in a drawer until I’m sick and tired of crickets. I will let myself go so hungry that my killer instincts completely take over and nature does what it is meant to do: nail that frog! And since I’ll be so famished, that frog won’t taste so bad after all. It may even taste like a delicacy and leave me utterly satisfied.

Procrastinators can be highly effective people too, as long as they harvest the powers of the art of procrastination. What does that infer about that old saying? Well, that it’s just that–an old adage.

Here is another saying for you. “If you want something done, ask a busy person to do it. The more things you do, the more you can do.” -Lucille Ball. I bet you she didn’t eat frogs.