{"id":28281,"date":"2021-03-08T19:02:16","date_gmt":"2021-03-08T23:02:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?p=28281"},"modified":"2021-03-10T19:53:24","modified_gmt":"2021-03-10T23:53:24","slug":"abcde-method","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/","title":{"rendered":"Brian Tracy’s ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What is the ABCDE method from Brian Tracy’s Eat That Frog<\/em>? How can using this method help you accomplish more?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ABCDE method is a tool for prioritizing. On paper, list everything you have to do for the next day in order of importance. Make sure you complete all of the A’s before moving down the list.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Keep reading for instructions on how to use Tracy’s ABCDE method.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

The ABCDE Method<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You\u2019ll get more and more-important things done faster if you effectively plan and set priorities. The ABCDE method is a tool for prioritizing. Here\u2019s how it works. On paper, list everything you have to do for the next day. Next, rank each item by marking it with an A, B, C, D, or E, as follows:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A<\/strong>: Use an A to designate tasks that are very important<\/strong>. They are tasks that you must<\/em> do\u2014not doing them will have serious negative consequences. For instance, an \u201cA\u201d task might be something your boss directed you to do, or it could be visiting a top customer. If you have multiple tasks of this level, prioritize by marking them A-1, A-2, and so on. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

B<\/strong>: Use this label for tasks that you <\/strong>should<\/em><\/strong> do<\/strong>, such as returning a non-critical call or email. These tasks have much less dire consequences than \u201cA\u201d tasks\u2014for instance, someone may be unhappy if you don\u2019t do it. These are tadpoles compared to the \u201cA\u201d list items, which are frogs. Never do a \u201cB\u201d task when there\u2019s still an \u201cA\u201d task to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

C<\/strong>: A \u201cC\u201d task is one that would be good to do<\/strong>, but it doesn\u2019t much matter whether you do it or not. Examples include having lunch with a coworker or phoning a friend. These tasks don\u2019t affect your work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

D<\/strong>: A \u201cD\u201d task is one you can delegate.<\/strong> You should delegate anything that someone else can do, so you can create time to do the tasks that only you can do, the consequential \u201cA\u201d tasks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

E:<\/strong> These are tasks you can eliminate<\/strong>. They include things that were important at one time but are no longer relevant, or unnecessary things that have become habits. Any time spent on one of these tasks is time diverted from an \u201cA\u201d task.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s important to discipline yourself to start on your A-1 task immediately and persevere to completion. By prioritizing your work and getting the important things done, you\u2019ll accomplish more than several people\u2019s efforts combined. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What is the ABCDE method from Brian Tracy’s Eat That Frog? How can using this method help you accomplish more? The ABCDE method is a tool for prioritizing. On paper, list everything you have to do for the next day in order of importance. Make sure you complete all of the A’s before moving down the list. Keep reading for instructions on how to use Tracy’s ABCDE method.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":28292,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[42,30],"tags":[224],"class_list":["post-28281","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-motivation","category-work","tag-eat-that-frog","","tg-column-two"],"yoast_head":"\nBrian Tracy's ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize - Shortform Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The ABCDE method is a tool for prioritizing. You\u2019ll get more and more important things done faster if you effectively plan and set priorities.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Brian Tracy's ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The ABCDE method is a tool for prioritizing. You\u2019ll get more and more important things done faster if you effectively plan and set priorities.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Shortform Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2021-03-08T23:02:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-03-10T23:53:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/wordpress.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"866\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"535\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Hannah Aster\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Hannah Aster\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Hannah Aster\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f\"},\"headline\":\"Brian Tracy’s ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-03-08T23:02:16+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-03-10T23:53:24+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/\"},\"wordCount\":431,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Eat That Frog!\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Motivation\",\"Work\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/\",\"name\":\"Brian Tracy's ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize - Shortform Books\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2021-03-08T23:02:16+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-03-10T23:53:24+00:00\",\"description\":\"The ABCDE method is a tool for prioritizing. You\u2019ll get more and more important things done faster if you effectively plan and set priorities.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg\",\"width\":866,\"height\":535},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Brian Tracy’s ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"description\":\"The World's Best Book Summaries\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Shortform Books\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png\",\"width\":500,\"height\":74,\"caption\":\"Shortform Books\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f\",\"name\":\"Hannah Aster\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Hannah Aster\"},\"description\":\"Hannah is a seasoned writer and editor who started her journey with Shortform nearly five years ago. She grew up reading mostly fiction books but transitioned to non-fiction writing when she started her travel website in 2018. When she's not writing or traveling, you can find Hannah working on home reno projects, crafting, or taking care of plants.\",\"knowsAbout\":[\"Graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree in English and minors in professional and creative writing\"],\"jobTitle\":\"SEO Team Lead\",\"worksFor\":\"Shortform\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/hannah\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Brian Tracy's ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize - Shortform Books","description":"The ABCDE method is a tool for prioritizing. You\u2019ll get more and more important things done faster if you effectively plan and set priorities.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Brian Tracy's ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize","og_description":"The ABCDE method is a tool for prioritizing. You\u2019ll get more and more important things done faster if you effectively plan and set priorities.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/","og_site_name":"Shortform Books","article_published_time":"2021-03-08T23:02:16+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-03-10T23:53:24+00:00","og_image":[{"width":866,"height":535,"url":"https:\/\/s3.amazonaws.com\/wordpress.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Hannah Aster","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Hannah Aster","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/"},"author":{"name":"Hannah Aster","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f"},"headline":"Brian Tracy’s ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize","datePublished":"2021-03-08T23:02:16+00:00","dateModified":"2021-03-10T23:53:24+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/"},"wordCount":431,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg","keywords":["Eat That Frog!"],"articleSection":["Motivation","Work"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/","name":"Brian Tracy's ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize - Shortform Books","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg","datePublished":"2021-03-08T23:02:16+00:00","dateModified":"2021-03-10T23:53:24+00:00","description":"The ABCDE method is a tool for prioritizing. You\u2019ll get more and more important things done faster if you effectively plan and set priorities.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg","width":866,"height":535},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/abcde-method\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Brian Tracy’s ABCDE Method: Learn to Prioritize"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","name":"Shortform Books","description":"The World's Best Book Summaries","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Shortform Books","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/logo-equilateral-with-text-no-bg.png","width":500,"height":74,"caption":"Shortform Books"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/f39f52830e4f7039a16e45d12354542f","name":"Hannah Aster","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/0302cb2690b70a21639bc6873e587f42d39d02385b7e59d8efd0d3e000ae7681?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Hannah Aster"},"description":"Hannah is a seasoned writer and editor who started her journey with Shortform nearly five years ago. She grew up reading mostly fiction books but transitioned to non-fiction writing when she started her travel website in 2018. When she's not writing or traveling, you can find Hannah working on home reno projects, crafting, or taking care of plants.","knowsAbout":["Graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor's degree in English and minors in professional and creative writing"],"jobTitle":"SEO Team Lead","worksFor":"Shortform","url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/author\/hannah\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/abcs.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28281","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/8"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=28281"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28281\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28291,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/28281\/revisions\/28291"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/28292"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=28281"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=28281"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.shortform.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=28281"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}