Customer Reviews

Eat That Frog! (EasyRead Large Bold Edition)

5 star:		(107)
4 star:		(44)
3 star:		(20)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Eat that Frog is an excellent motivational book. The complaints I see by most here are along the lines that there's nothing new in this book. To me, there's nothing new in MOST self help books. After all, we each know that the way to stop procrastinating is to just do what we dread, the way to lose weight is to burn off more calories than we consume, the way to keep house is to clean and organize on a regular basis, and so on. What we seek is some motivation and some reasoning for doing what we dislike doing.

Brian Tracy gives this motivation and reasoning. This is a short, fast read. As the author says, it doesn't go into all the psychology of procrastination; rather, it gets right to the action. Brian Tracy covers such things as determining priorities, delegating and eliminating some tasks, knowing what's okay to procrastinate about, and whether to tackle your "frog" (your big task that will lend the greatest results) first or a lesser priority task.

The result is a clear, concise book that is helpful and shows that by regularly eating your frogs first, you develop a habit that makes it easier to accomplish more than the average person and do it with increasingly less effort. An excellent, worthwhile book that you will likely refer to time and time again.

This books could have easily been titled "Doing Discipline" but I have to admit, I like the title "Eat that Frog", the metaphor really digs into the well of the procrastinator.

Eat That Frog delivers 21 habits that have been determined invaluable for sucess. Forget the reviewers who feel that these habits could have been condensed, to leave any habit out would be a deterrent to the effectiveness of the program.

This book is a brief easy read but is not intended to be a one time read. Tracy offers bullet points and exercises. They should be repeated on a daily basis.

The concept is that the 21 habits repeated daily can result in behavior change in 21 days. Some behavior "experts" disagree, however, with advanced techniques like NLP and Alpha programming, it is actually possible to reprogram yourself and establish new habits much quicker. But, like all conditioning, it must be repeated or it can be lost. Just like physical exercise.

I am glad that Brian Tracy is coming out with these smaller books that act like little coaches in book form. The book is compact and can be carried in a mens briefcase or a ladies purse or bag. You can read it over a coffee break or at other opportune times.

Another great one by the great Brian Tracy.

I really can understand the 1 star reviews. Brian Tracy is such a talented author and trainer that it seems like a waste to read a book by him, especially after you have those 300+ page books that he puts out. You have to understand what Brian is trying to do here. This was intended to be a fast read, to give you 21 powerful techniques to overcome procrastination and achieve success. In that light, Brian has succeeded admirably with this work. Highly recommended.

I don't write a lot of reviews, and I depend on Amazon reviews to help me have honest, non-biased opinion to help me spend my money. In that spirit, let me say that "Eat That Frog" is a complete waste of money. There are a number of good books on procrastination out there, but this book is not one of them.

What ideas this book may contain can all be gleaned from the reviews already written here on Amazon. There's actually more substance in some of them than in the entire book itself. I found myself shaking my head and angrily turning every page, frustrated that Tracy could get away with publishing a book so completely devoid of content. Fortunately this book is short; it deserves to be a pamphlet. A very short pamphlet.

That's not completely fair. The book has content, but it's either embarrassingly common sense, or startlingly unoriginal. Add in the fact that Tracy writes like, well, a second-tier motivational speaker and there you've got it. For example, here's a sentence from chapter 9, "Refuse to allow a weakness or lack of ability in any area to hold you back." Does that motivate you? Does it help you in any way? Me neither. Fill 113 pages with large type and a lot of white space with this empty, thoughtless, and above all condescending blather and you, too, can write a motivational book.

Oh, and don't forget to fill ten pages with blatant self-promotion ("Double your income, Double your time off!") just to beef up the page count and make the book a little thicker.

Perhaps you really are a desperate procrastinator (like myself) who's looking for someone to help him out of his overwhelmingly negative habits. You want to find a book to help? I'll recommend two: Rita Emmett's "The Procrastinator's Handbook", which, while not original is at least honest and readable, which is more than you can say about "Frog."

Perhaps on the top of the list is David Allen's "Getting Things Done" which is the absolutely best, most practical, applicable, and sustainable system for overcoming procrastination I've ever read. And it's not even a book specifically about procrastination. Yet it works. Magic. Based on the advice in "Getting Things Done" I've finished my bachelor's degree -- 14 years after I first enrolled in college.

The short of it: don't waste a nickel on "Eat That Frog", and spend you money on one of many much, much, much better books. You deserve it.

To give you a better idea of the content of this book, below please find what the twenty one great ways are (available in both contents and conclusion pages):-

1. Set the table (goal setting)
2. Plan everyday in advance
3. Apply the 80/20 rule to everything
4. Consider the sequences
5. Practice the ABCDE Method continually (rating and prioritizing)
6. Focus on key result areas
7. Obey the Law of Forced Efficiency (do the most important first)
8. Prepare thoroughly before you begin
9. Do your homework
10. Leverage your special talents
11. Identify you key contraints
12. Take it one oil barrel at a time
13. Put the pressure on yourself
14. Maximize your personal powers
15. Motivate yourself into action
16. Practice creative procrastination
17. Do the most difficult task first
18. Slive and dice the task
19. Create large chunks of time
20. Develop a sense of urgency
21. Single handle every task

As you may see, some ways or chapters do overlap. However, the book is not that repetitive and it's a fun read with the author's excellent writing skill. In case you just want a short and interesting book (the title is great) that focuses on procrastination with less coverage of time and life management, this is it. Nevertheless, a drawback may be that many ideas here had been presented in the author's previous books. (I had read three Tracy books before this) Anyway, wish you all tasty frog (things that you keep procrastinating) meals! Enjoy!

This book is a great complement to Tracy's 300+ page books like Maximum Achievement and Advanced Selling Strategies.What I like about this book is that it is compact in size and can be read and reread consistently. The exercises develop your mental muscles.If you are in sales, I also suggest Brian's Be a Sales Superstar. Don't set Goals by Wade Cook is also excellent and another quick, easy read that is jamm packed with information.

I've been listening to Brian Tracy audio cassette programs since the mid-1980's and have always been impressed with his committment to research and the high-quality of advice. He has always been a prolific producer of self-improvement materials without the hype of a Tony Robbins. In "Eat the Frog" Brian chunks down and simplifies the time management process into 21 easy and clear steps with action steps at the end. This book may be the best book for many people who want to accomplish goals and manage their life. I think every company should buy copies of this book and give them to their representatives especially if they need something to read for air travel. You can get the gist of it in a day, but use it for a lifetime. I know that Brian could have written a 300 page book if he wanted to, but this one is handy, simple, and profound. For me personally, I'd like to see a second edition of the book with some diagrams, cartoons, and pictures. That would make this book a little more interesting and fun.

If you are looking for a simplified time management system that gets results, look no further. Brian Tracy has simplified time management and as even added a Frog as a metaphor to stimulate you into action. Since reading Eat That Frog, anytime I want to put things off, I visualize that big ugly frog going rivett, rivett (you can't do it in froggie talk) and I get about it and getting it done.

Don't judge this book by it's size. It's powerpacked. But only if you use it.

If you are looking for a simple, quick read, real tool to get you back on track or simply get you started in time management this book is for you. The book itself, in the format it is written, is not only insightful, but understands how busy we are and gets to the point. This book outlines the nuts and bolts and allows you to apply it right away. It's not that it is a new system, it is organized for you to put it to practical use. I am a husband, father of two, a long time entrepreneur and small business owner, I don't have the time to read a 300-page book on theory. I have made this one of our core training books for the entire company. If you struggle with "not enough hours in the day" as I do, this book is for you.

This would be a great book, if it were purported to be about ways to use your time productively and achieve your goals in the quickest, most efficient manner.

That isn't what it's advertised at, so it's not a great book. In fact, I found it utterly useless. I bought this book because I'm a procrastinator. I have a lot of things that I need to do and instead, I'm writing reviews on Amazon and reading books designed to help me stop procrastinating. This book is all about identifying your goals, removing any obstacles to achieving those goals, and finally learning to ignore all the things you do on a daily basis that aren't really necessary.

Where, in that description, does it say anything about "teaching yourself to just stop putting things off and DO IT"? I don't have a time management problem, I have a motivation problem. I could follow every one of the steps in this book and at the end instead of having a giant list of useless tasks that I don't feel like doing, I'd have a smaller list of more important and meaningful tasks that I don't feel like doing.

This book will NOT help you stop procrastinating. The author seems to have misinterpreted "procrastinate" as meaning "not having enough time to do the things that are necessary to achieve your goals, and not having an understanding of your goals." I know what my goals are. I know how to reach them. I know exactly what to do and I also know what I don't need to do.

I'll just do it tomorrow.