3 Benefits of Doing the Hard Things First

As much as I love productivity and time management, there is one thing that holds me back from being fully productive. And that is, doing the hard things.

We all have tasks we consider harder than others. And what we consider hard will be different for each of us. However, the one commonality the tasks share is that they keep us from experiencing the real productivity we need to achieve our goals.

A couple of weeks ago I had a few extra moments before I needed to start on the next task when I decided to download some software on my computer. I had put it off because I thought it would be too complicated. However, because I didn’t have this particular software on my computer, I was held back from completing certain projects.

So, I decided to give it a try. And you know what? It was easier and quicker than I thought it would be. Something I had put off for months because I thought it would be too complicated turned out to be a snap!

I was so excited and relieved to have that one task completed. It made me think about how bearing down and tackling those hard things could provide benefits in my journey to achieve my goals. Especially if I completed them first before doing any other tasks.

Here are a few benefits I came up with:

1. Doing one hard thing first motivates you to do more hard things.

Once I tackled the software installation and realized how easy it was, I was motivated to work on other tasks that I had been putting off. I picked a few of the tasks and got to work on them. Some were much easier than I anticipated, and some were as hard or complicated as I thought they’d be. But I got them done!

2. Doing the hard things first helps you to move forward on the rest of your to-do list.

Often I put the hard tasks last on my list. However, I’ve discovered that if I jump in and get them done first, the rest of my list gets done much more quickly.

Think about it…when you have tasks that you consider difficult to complete, there is a pressure that is added. And when you keep putting them off, the weight of those tasks on your mind makes it much harder to work on the easier items on your to-do list.

When you complete the hard tasks first, that weight is relieved and you can focus on the rest of your to-do list with confidence.

3. Doing the hard things first will let you use your energy more efficiently.

If you tackle the hard tasks first thing, you usually have more energy and brain power to work on them than you would at the end of the day. Getting the hard things out of the way lets you use your energy more efficiently.

How do you tackle the hard things?