Eat That Frog!

Brian Tracy

📚 GENRE: Personal Development

📃 PAGES: 144

✅ COMPLETED: October 2, 2022

🧐 RATING: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

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Short Summary

Procrastination is a real issue. In Eat That Frog! Brian Tracy provides 21 ways to increase personal productivity, reduce distractions, set goals, and become more efficient all around.

Key Takeaways

1️⃣ Focus — The best approach is always to focus 100% of your attention on one task at a time. A common tendency is to multitask and constantly shift between projects. In the end, multitasking makes you less efficient and kills momentum. Try to focus on completing one task before moving to the next one. Reduce distractions, put all of your concentration on the task, and work through the project until it’s completed. Always attack big, high-value tasks first. 

2️⃣ Time Management — One of the most important questions to repeatedly ask yourself is this: What is the most valuable use of my time right now? We all get the same amount of time every day. Great time management and productivity comes down to making the most of your time. You have to be aware of and proactive about how you spend your time. It should be spent on things that are going to make you better. Learn to hate wasted time. 

3️⃣ Limit Distractions — When working hard, either at work or on personal goals in your own time, turn the phone to ‘Do Not Disturb’ and don’t check it until you have a break. Nothing impedes progress like distractions and drama via texts, social media, television, email, and instant messages. Continuous interruptions and distractions prevent you from focusing your attention where it needs to be — on the project, task, or activity at hand. 

Favorite Quote

“The standard you set for your own work and behavior should be higher than anyone else could set for you. Make a game of starting a little earlier, working a little harder, and staying a little later. Always look for ways to go the extra mile, to do more than you were paid for.”

Book Notes 📑

Preface

  • Maximizing Time — The ultra successful people in life, regardless of their field, make the most of their time every day. That’s one of the keys to becoming a high performer. You have to be conscious of your time and find ways to use it productively as much as possible. Reduce distractions and drama.
    • Quote (P. xi): “Simply put, some people are doing better than others because they do things differently and they do the right things right. Especially, successful, happy, prosperous people use their time far, far better than the average person.”
    • Quote (P. xii): “The ability to concentrate single-mindedly on your most important task, to do it well and to finish it completely, is the key to great success, achievement, respect, status, and happiness in life.”
      • Takeaway — You have to be able to control your focus and center it in the right areas in order to become a high achiever. It’s very easy to get distracted and waste time. Try to control your concentration and remain focused on maximizing your time and being productive. 

Introduction: Eat That Frog 🐸

  • Important Tasks First — You should always start your day/work day by completing your toughest projects or tasks first. Avoid putting these tasks off until later. Avoid tackling the easy stuff first. Brian Tracy uses “frogs” to describe tasks and recommends “eating the ugliest frog first.”
    • Quote (P. 2): “This is another way of saying that if you have two important tasks before you, start with the biggest, hardest, most important task first. Discipline yourself to begin immediately and then to persist until the task is complete before you go on to something else.”
    • Quote (P. 3): “The key to reaching high levels of performance and productivity is to develop the lifelong habit of tackling your major task first thing each morning.”
    • Quote (P. 3): “Successful, effective people are those who launch directly into their major tasks and then discipline themselves to work steadily and single-mindedly until those tasks are complete.”
  • Interesting Fact — The completion of an important task triggers the release of endorphins in your brain. You should try to become “addicted” to completing tasks and the endorphin spike that it triggers. When you do, you become addicted to knocking out projects and making progress personally and professionally. 
  • Visualize — Your self-image largely determines your performance. See yourself as somebody who is focused, productive, and makes the most of his time. See yourself as somebody who is committed to personal development and is disciplined about getting things done well and efficiently. You don’t want to be the guy who is screwing around and wasting time. 

Ch. 1: Set the Table

  • Clear Goals — It’s important to come up with goals and develop a plan to achieve each one on your list. Start by identifying the goal and decide what it will kraken to get you there. The goal-setting process goes as follows:
    • Decide What You Want — Sit down and list out 10 goals you want to achieve.
    • Write It Down — Put your goals on paper.
    • Set a Deadline — Give yourself a timetable for completing the goal. This will give you a sense of urgency.
    • Work Backwards — Go through your list and really think about what it will take to achieve the goal. What are the rungs of the ladder? What will you have to become to achieve the goal? What are a few sub-goals that you’ll need to achieve on your way to the big goal? 
    • Organize the List — Organize your list by priority and sequence. 
    • Take Action — Begin the work. Start working towards the goals and sub goals you’ve outlined. Have the discipline to work at it and make progress daily. Every day, you should be doing something, even if it’s small, that brings you closer to the goal. 
  • Quote (P. 10): “Goals are the fuel in the furnace of achievement. The bigger your goals and the clearer they are, the more excited you become about achieving them. The more you think about your goals, the greater becomes your inner drive and your desire to accomplish them.”
    • Takeaway — Become hyper-focused on your goals. It starts by clearly defining them and outlining a realistic roadmap to achieving each one. Establish a checklist for each goal and get to work on knocking out each check. 

Ch. 2: Plan Every Day in Advance

  • Create Checklists — Always maintain a checklist of items to slowly work through. Whenever a new task comes in, add it to your list. Constantly refer to your list throughout the day. Having a checklist of items saves you time — you’re not left wondering what else you need to do; when you complete one project, you check the list and move to the next one quickly.
    • Quote (P. 15): “As you work through the day, tick off the items on your list as you complete them. This activity gives you a visual picture of accomplishment. It generates a feeling of success and forward motion. Seeing yourself working progressively through your list motivates and energizes you. It raises your self-esteem and self-respect. Steady, visible progress propels you forward and helps you overcome procrastination.”
    • Quote (P. 16): “As you work steadily through your list, you will develop a sense of positive forward momentum that enables you to overcome procrastination. This feeling of progress gives you more energy and keeps you going throughout the day.”
      • Takeaway — A checklist is a perfect tool to keep you on track. Focus on completing tasks and marking them on the list. By doing this, you begin to create momentum and you become motivated to work through more projects. Challenge yourself to burn through as many items on the list as possible during the day. Stay focused on making progress. 

Ch. 3: Apply the 80/20 Rule to Everything

  • The 80/20 Rule — Developed by Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who first wrote about it in 1895. Essentially, Pareto found that 20% of people were supplying 80% of the country’s production. He found that the rule applied to almost everything:
    • Ex. Production — 20% of your activities will account for 80% of your results 
    • Ex. Sales — 20% of your customers will account for 80% of your sales
    • Ex. Personal Value — 20% of your skills will account for 80% of your value in the workplace 
  • 80/20 Rule & Daily Tasks — The 80/20 Rule also applies to your daily schedule: 20% of the tasks on your daily to-do list account for 80% of the value you can provide that day. Most people knock out the easy tasks that aren’t in that top 20%. It’s important to prioritize and concentrate on completing the items in your top 20%. That’s how you make great daily progress and provide great value. Resist the temptation to do the small, insignificant tasks first.
    • Quote (P. 20): “The hardest part of any important task is getting started on it in the first place. Once you actually begin work on a valuable task, you will be naturally motivated to continue.”
      • Takeaway — Just get started. Often, the most difficult thing to overcome with procrastination is getting started. If you can have the discipline to just start working on a difficult project you aren’t looking forward to, you will build momentum and be able to continue fairly easily. 
  • Quote (P. 21): “Time management is really life management, personal management. It is really taking control of the sequence of events.”
    • Takeaway — Time management is an important component of success. You have to be able to manage your time wisely and strategically so you’re getting the most out of every hour. When you do move to a certain task, do your best to focus on the project and not get distracted by things. 

Ch. 4: Consider the Consequences

  • Spend Time Wisely — We all get the same amount of time in a day. Everything comes back to time management and the decisions you make with your time. Focus on spending your time on tasks that are making you better. Stay away from things that are distracting and a waste of time. Always be conscious of how you’re spending your time. 
    • Quote (P. 24): “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.”
      • Takeaway — A lot of people are not focused. They care more about instant gratification, and value entertainment over education. They’re too busy goofing off. The highest achievers prioritize education over entertainment and are extremely disciplined about making progress every day. They’re focused. 
  • Prioritization — One of the most important questions you can every have in your mind is this: What is the most valuable use of my time right now? This question should be in your head constantly. It’s the key to great time management. When you can make the most of every minute and squeeze every bit of productivity out of the day as possible, you will grow quickly. You have to be disciplined enough to spend your time on things that aren’t always fun, but are extremely beneficial to your growth. Learn to hate wasted time. 
    • Quote (P. 28): “This is the core question of time management. Answering this question correctly is the key to overcoming procrastination and becoming a highly productive person. Every hour of every day, one task represents the most valuable use of your time at that moment. Your job is to ask yourself this question, over and over again, and to always be working on the answer to it, whatever it is.”

Ch. 5: Practice Creative Procrastination

  • Say ‘No’ — If something is not a good use of your time, say ‘no.’ This is challenging at first, but it needs to be done. You can’t say ‘yes’ to everyone and everybody. You have to know what’s important to you and what’s the best use of your time. If something isn’t in line with your goals and isn’t a good use of time, it’s perfectly acceptable to decline. Here’s a good line: “It’s a ‘no’ for me, but I’ll let you know if anything changes.”
  • Cut Out Low-Value Activities — Take an honest self-assessment and pinpoint the low-value activities you do on a consistent, day-to-day basis. Cut out anything that isn’t making you better. Replace low-value activities (i.e. television) with good, high-value tasks (i.e. reading) that will help you improve and maximize your potential.
    • Quote (P. 32): “Continually review your life and work to find time-consuming tasks and activities that you can abandon. Cut down on television watching and Internet surfing and instead spend the time with your family, read, exercise, or do something else that enhances the quality of your life.”
      • Takeaway — This process is essential to great time management and goes back to the idea of always being aware of how you’re spending your time. For the most part, anything that isn’t helping you or isn’t adding value to your life should be eliminated and replaced with activities that are making you better. 

Ch. 6: Use the ABCDE Method Continually

  • The ABCDE Productivity Method — Create a to-do checklist and prioritize tasks using the ABCDE Method. Next to each task, write a letter ranging from A-E. The point with this exercise is to give yourself a visual aid so you know what you need to focus on. Going through this process eliminates procrastination and laziness, and makes it clear what you should be working on. Attack each task on the list in order based on the following rating scale:
    • A — Super urgent. You have to do it now.
    • B — You should do it. But only after all ‘A’ tasks are done
    • C — It would be nice to do it, but it doesn’t really provide much value
    • D — You can delegate it to somebody else
    • E — You can eliminate it altogether

Ch. 7: Focus on Key Result Areas

  • Key Result Areas — Take some time to identify the key result areas associated with your job. Regardless of the job, everybody has a few key result areas that they are expected to perform well in. Determine which key result areas you can improve on. Doing this can make a big difference in your overall performance.
    • Ex. Manager — Key result areas for a manager include:
      • Planning
      • Organizing
      • Staffing
      • Delegating
      • Supervising
      • Measuring
      • Reporting
  • Attack Weaknesses — Everybody has strengths and weaknesses. Highly successful people are great about taking an honest self-assessment to identify their weaknesses, and are motivated enough to take the necessary action to improve those weaknesses. This is the process of personal growth, and it can make you incredibly valuable and skilled over time if done consistently.
    • Quote (P. 42): “The fact is that everybody has both strengths and weaknesses. Refuse to rationalize, justify, or defend your areas of weakness. Instead, identify them clearly. Set a goal and make a plan to become very good in each of those areas.”
      • Takeaway — Ultimately, you should be excited when you identify a weakness because it represents an opportunity to get better. Most people run from, or avoid, their weaknesses. If you can identify what you’re weak at and put in the work to improve those areas, you become more and more valuable and skilled over time. Public speaking comes to mind for me. 

Ch. 8: Apply the Law of Three

  • Your Top 3 — Three core tasks that you perform contain most of the value that you contribute to your employer. Identify the three and try to spend most of your work time on those tasks. Issues and a lack of progress arise when you are spending most of your work day on smaller, less impactful tasks that don’t provide very much value.
    • Quote (P. 47): “Perhaps the most important word in the world of work is contribution. Your rewards, both financial and emotional, will always be in direct proportion to your results, to the value of your contribution. If you want to increase your rewards, you must focus on increasing the value of what you do.”
      • Takeaway — Becoming valuable in the workplace, and in life, is all about making impactful contributions. Find the areas where you provide the most value and become elite at those tasks. At the same time, identify your weaknesses and get to work on improving them. 
  • Work Hard — There is too much wasted time in the workplace these days. When you come to work, it’s time to work. Take it seriously. Challenge yourself to get as much done as possible during the work day.  Do your best to avoid distractions and meaningless chit chat. Outworking others and being more productive than others is one of the ways you provide value and impact, which leads to rewards.
    • Quote (P. 50): “When you go to work, put your head down and work the whole time. Start a little earlier, stay a little later, and work a little harder. Don’t waste time. Every minute that you spend in idle chitchat with coworkers is time taken away from the work that you must accomplish if you want to do well at your job.”
  • Look for Balance — In the end, being productive and managing your time well is a means to an end. It’s meant to give you the financial freedom to live a comfortable life. It’s meant to give you more time to do the things you enjoy in life. It’s meant to free up more time to spend with the people you love the most. Balance in life isn’t optional — it’s required. Relationships are one of the greatest sources of happiness.
    • Quote (P. 51): “Your goal should be to perform at your very best at work — to get the very most done and enjoy the very highest level of rewards possible for you in your career. Simultaneously, you must always remember to ‘smell the roses’ along the way. Never lose sight of the real reasons why you work as hard as you do and why you are so determined to accomplish the very most with the time that you invest.”
      • Takeaway — Although you need to always work hard and be disciplined, try not avoid becoming a ‘machine’ who thinks spending time with loved ones is a waste of time. Relationships are extremely valuable in life and should be prioritized. Time with loved ones is never a waste of time. Take time to slow down and enjoy everything you have. 

Ch. 9: Prepare Thoroughly Before You Begin

  • Preparation — Advanced preparation is an underrated component of high productivity. Make things easy on yourself by preparing ahead of time. Your goal should be to make things as easy as possible on yourself so you can move through a project fluidly and without interruption. This concept of ‘making things easy’ is also discussed in Atomic Habits. Make your workspace attractive as well — having a clean, organized, well-presented desk will help you a lot. 
    • Ex. Gym — Setting out your workout clothes the night before
    • Ex. Lunch — Making your lunch the night before your next day of work
    • Ex. CC Central Links — At Cambridge, I have a PowerPoint that contains all CC Central links for projects I’m working on. This makes finding the relevant internal documents extremely easy, which allows me to build momentum and work my way through a project fluidly and without interruption. 

Ch. 10: Take It One Oil Barrel at a Time

  • Think in Steps — Never think of a big project as a whole; break it into small, bite-sized steps that you can begin working through. Thinking of the project as a whole will lead to procrastination. Regardless of the goal, project, or task, think about it in small steps. Will Smith also discussed this in his book Will. He used the analogy of building a big brick wall for his father one summer. Will discussed the idea of focusing on each brick, not the wall.
    • Ex. White Paper — Never think about the whole white paper. You’ll never get started if you think that way. Break it into parts: an outline, the introduction, two or three body sections, and a conclusion. Then think about attacking each small step before moving to the next one. Before you know it, you’re done. That’s the idea here. 
  • Interesting Fact — The Sahara Desert in Algeria (North Africa) is the largest hot desert in the world — you have to travel 500 miles to cross it. Many people have died trying to cross because it used to be difficult to see the trail with the many dust storms that pop up. To counter the lack of features in the terrain, the French at one time marked the track with black, 55-gallon oil drums every 5 kilometers. Now you can always see two oil barrels — the one you just passed and the one 5 kilometers ahead of it. That’s how people stay on course. 

Ch. 11: Upgrade Your Key Skills

  • Never Stop Learning — Continuous learning is one of the requirements for success in any field. You have to always be looking for things to learn and ways to improve existing skills or learn new ones. Everything is learnable off you put the time in and remain displayed to your leaning habits every day. A few of the best ways to learn that should be part of your daily routine:
    • Reading — You need to read for at least one hour every day
    • Mobile University — The average car owner is behind the wheel 500-1,000 hours every year. Maximize your time here by listening to educational podcasts or audio programs. The amount of extra work you can get in by doing this is remarkable.
    • Take Courses — Sign up for online courses offered through community colleges
    • Public Speaking — Push yourself to become a great verbal communicator. The key to becoming a good public speaker is simply doing it a lot until you’re comfortable. ToastMasters is a great option here. 
  • Strive for Mastery — Identify what you’re good at and where you provide the most value and then do everything you can to learn and become elite in those areas. The more you learn, the better and stronger you get. Continuous learning is so important. You have to be looking to learn every day. It needs to be part of your daily routine. 
    • Quote (P. 59): “Learn what you need to learn so that you can do your work in an excellent fashion.”
    • Quote (P. 60): “Identify the most important things you do, and then make a plan to continually upgrade your skills in those areas.”
    • Quote (P. 62): “The more you learn and know, the more confident and motivated you feel. The better you become, the more capable you will be of doing even more in your field.”
      • Takeaway — Continuous learning and growth is what allows you to become great. There are no shortcuts. This has to be part of your daily routine. Look to get better and learn every single day. Get 1% better every day. Prioritize education over entertainment. 

Ch. 12: Identify Your Key Constraints

  • Limiting Factors — With anything you do, look for ways to be more efficient. What are some ways you can eliminate friction in the process? Is there anything in your processes holding you back or causing you delay? Find these and look to sure them up if possible. 

Ch. 13: Put the Pressure on Yourself

  • Push Yourself — High performers put pressure on themselves to produce excellent work, consistently learn new things, go the extra mile, and improve themselves every day. They are internally motivated and driven — they don’t need anybody else to light their fire. Successful people have high standards and are upset with themselves if they don’t meet that standard every day. Successful people work extremely hard and are bothered if they didn’t get all of their work in that day. Every day, push yourself to produce at a high level and maximize every hour of time.
    • Quote (P. 68): “Only about 2% of people can work entirely without supervision. We call these people ‘leaders.’ This is the kind of person you were meant to be and that you can’t be, if you decide to be. To reach your full potential, you must form the habit of putting the pressure on yourself and not waiting for someone else to come along and do it for you.”
      • Takeaway — Your personal standards and expectations of yourself should be higher than anybody else’s. You should never need somebody else to come along and tell you to kick it into gear. Always be internally driven to succeed and make progress. The opportunity to get better every day is one of the joys of life. 
    • Quote (P. 69): “The standard you set for your own work and behavior should be higher than anyone else could set for you. Make a game of starting a little earlier, working a little harder, and staying a little later. Always look for ways to go the extra mile, to do more than you were paid for.”
      • Takeaway — Going the extra mile in everything you do is one of the ways you can separate yourself and provide additional value. Always look to do a little more than what was expected. Pay attention to the details. Even something as small as the way you present the content in an email is a way you can go the extra mile.  
    • Quote (P. 70): “Successful people continually put the pressure on themselves to perform at high levels. Unsuccessful people have to be instructed and pressured by others.”
  • Set Personal Deadlines — Operate with a sense of urgency, even if there’s no pressing deadline to meet. When you get an assignment, give yourself a deadline. Try to make it a game — see if you can meet your own personal deadlines. Again, put the pressure on yourself. Have high expectations of yourself. 

Ch. 14: Motivate Yourself to Action

  • Optimism — One of the most important characteristics to strive for is optimism. You really only have control over two areas of your life: your attitude and your effort. Choose to see the best in things and people. Optimistic people tend to do the following consistently:
    • The Bright Side — Optimists look for the good in every situation, regardless of what happened
    • Look for Lessons — In every situation, optimists look for valuable lessons to take away
    • Look for Solutions — Optimists are solution-oriented; they spend their energy looking for solutions rather than whining, blaming, and complaining. Put a solution on the board. 
    • Goal Driven — Optimists are fixated on their goals. They are always thinking about their goals and how to achieve them. They’re always looking to make progress. Everything they do has purpose and is designed to help them reach the goals they set for themselves. 

Ch. 15: Technology Is a Terrible Master

  • Zones of Silence — Technology can be a huge source of daily distraction if used incorrectly. Social media and text messaging, in particular, can stunt your progress because you get distracted from the important tasks and projects you should be working on. You get caught up in drama. When working on things, put your phone in ‘Do Not Disturb’ and don’t check it until the work is done. Set up ‘zones of silence’ throughout your day.
    • Quote (P. 76): “For you to stay calm, clearheaded, and capable of performing at your best, detach on a regular basis from the technology that overwhelms you.”
      • Takeaway — It’s important to turn the phone off when working at work or when working on your goals outside of work. The back-and-forth text messaging with people is incredibly distracting when trying to get work done. It prevents you from working efficiently. 

Ch. 16: Technology Is a Wonderful Servant

  • Schedule Blocks — In your work calendar, don’t be afraid to schedule blocks of time for task completion. When other people try to schedule you for meetings, they will see that time for task completion blocked off on your calendar. These blocks of time will give you a chance to work exclusively on projects without distraction. 

Ch. 17: Focus Your Attention

  • Quote (P. 86): “Focused attention is the key to high performance. The ‘attraction of distraction,’ the lure of electronic and other interruptions, leads to diffused attention, a wandering mind, a lack of focus, and, ultimately, underachievement and failure.”
  • Task Shifting — Task shifting occurs when you begin trying to multitask. You end up going back and forth between projects and it prevents you from putting your entire focus on one task at a time, which is the best approach. When you task shift, you end up being less efficient and you make more mistakes because you’re constantly coming and going on a project. Email, instant messaging, and texting are primary sources.
    • Quote (P. 87): “After an Internet interruption, it takes about 17 minutes for you to shift your total attention back to your task and continue working. This is precisely why so many people today are working harder and harder, shifting from email interruptions to work and back again, and getting less and less accomplished.”
  • Lock In 🔒 — Focused attention is one of the keys to high performance. You have to lock in on your work and prevent technology, text messaging, email, and instant messaging from interrupting you and distracting you from completing tasks. Avoid multitasking if possible; the best approach is to put all of your focus on one task at a time. Complete a task in excellent fashion and move to the next one. A few ways to help you lock in include:
    • Phone Off — Put the phone on ‘Do Not Disturb’ while you’re working hard. Don’t check it until you have a break.
    • Limited Email — Check your email twice per day: at 11 a.m. and at 3 p.m. Email can be a big source of task shifting because you start trying to multitask to accommodate everyone in your inbox. Multitasking prevents you from focusing on one task at a time like you need to. 
  • Interesting Fact — When you respond to the bell or other sound that indicates an incoming email, text, or instant message, your brain releases a tiny shot of dopamine. It stimulates your curiosity and causes you to react and respond immediately. You instantly forget whatever else you were doing and turn your full attention to the new message. This is why it’s so important to set your phone to ‘Do Not Disturb’ and limit other distractions as much as possible. By doing this, you prevent yourself from getting lured in by distractions and drama because you never see the notifications. 
  • Prioritize — You should come into the office every day with a plan and a set of tasks you want to accomplish. Come in, get settled, turn off the phone, and begin working on those high-priority tasks. Reduce the distractions as much as possible and focus all of your attention on one project at a time. Then move to the next one. 

Ch. 18: Slice and Dice the Task

  • Motivated to Complete — We are wired to enjoy competing tasks of any kind. When we complete a task, we feel good — our endorphins begin to pump and we feel a sense of accomplishment that motivates us to keep going to the next task. This is why it’s important to break a big project into parts, rather than thinking of it as a whole. By breaking the project into parts and completing each mini-task, you build momentum and you motivate yourself to continue. Again, this is the brick analogy that Will Smith discussed in his book. 
    • Ex. Reading — Rather than thinking of reading an entire book, think about reading 15 pages per day. If you think about needing to read the whole book, you procrastinate and aren’t motivated to start. When you think about reading just 15 pages per day, it’s easier on you psychologically. 

Ch. 19: Create Large Chunks of Time

  • Schedule Personal Appointments — This was mentioned earlier, but schedule chunks of time in your work calendar for task completion. This will prevent people from scheduling meetings in those time slots, and will give you an opportunity to put your head down and work that entire time without distraction. 
    • Quote (P. 95): “Many highly productive people schedule specific activities in preplanned time slots all day long. These people build their work lives around accomplishing key tasks one at a time. As a result, they become more and more productive and eventually produce two times, three times, and five times as much is the average person.”

Ch. 20: Develop a Sense of Urgency

  • Move Quickly — Have a sense of urgency in everything you do. Work fast and move quickly from task to task. Wasting time should bother you.

Ch. 21: Single Handle Every Task

  • Focused Attention — It’s always best to focus on one task at a time and place 100% of your focus on that task before moving to a different project. Switching between tasks ends up costing you a lot of time. Each time you return to the task, you have to familiarize yourself with where you were when you stopped and what you still have to do. You have to overcome inertia and get yourself going again. You have to develop momentum and get into a productive rhythm again. 
  • Quote (P. 103): “In the final analysis, success in any area requires tons of discipline. Self-discipline, self-mastery, and self-control are the basic building blocks of both character and high performance.”