Thursday, March 15, 2007

The carrots principle


I hate the taste of carrots. My mum also dislikes them but, convinced that my eyesight depended on it (yes, she did ask me "Have you ever seen a rabbit with glasses?") she diligently applied herself to including them in my evening meals. Mum put carrots behind things, under things, wrapped in things, even mashing them into potatoes (which meant I hated the taste of the potatoes as well!).

With all attempts at escaping this torture finally exhausted (reasoning, begging, moaning, feigning death, moving the carrots onto my brother's plate...) I resigned myself to my miserable fate, and began working on coping strategies. The one that worked best for me was eating the carrots first, getting the foul deed over and done with, so I could enjoy the rest of my meal.

Why am I telling you this? Because when you have a variety of tasks to perform with similar priority levels, do the ones you want to do least, first. You'll get more done, and you'll finish the day in a better frame of mind.
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