“At the start of my workday, the first thing I like to do (way before I even think about checking my email!) is to identify my most important task, which I aim to complete within the first two hours of my day,” she explains.

Similarly to Brian Tracy’s famed ’eat the frog’ method, attacking your MIT first means that you’re often directly addressing the thing you’ve been avoiding – you know, the job that’s been looming over you and causing you an untold amount of stress. However, by creating the habit of doing your MIT first, not only do you get it done and off your plate, you also give yourself a sense of accomplishment that you can then carry through the rest of your day.

But it doesn’t stop there. After you’ve identified your MIT, Pottenger says that you need to be ruthless with your prioritisation. “As a rule of thumb, your hippocampus (aka memory centre) can keep three tasks clear in your mind simultaneously. For that reason, you should limit yourself to three tasks for the day,” she continues.

So, how do you narrow it down? As she puts it: “Chase the antelope, not the field mice. Focus on what is going to give you the biggest return for your time.”

How to use the MIT method to make your work day run smoothly