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This week, week #7 of the blog series, “10 weeks to Supreme Productivity,” I will explore a technique which will help you lessen stress and accomplish more. Simply stated, each and every day, do the tasks you dread or fear first, and get them over with.

Week # 7 Tip: Do the Worst First.

Do you want to be a hero? Do you want to be the rock star at work? Then be the person that tackles the tough problems in a timely and straightforward manner.

Most people are strongly conflict avoidant, and put off any disagreeable task. Avoiders hope the problem will go away, but that seldom happens, and problems rarely get better with time. In fact, the longer the conflicts lingers, the deeper its roots, and the harder it will be to resolve. Moreover, the bad things, unresolved, begin to stack up, making the avoider more and more stressed, and the work environment increasingly disagreeable. Avoiders survive the day, put off the conflict and tough conversations, stress over the avoided problems all day, then go home and kick the dog.

Productive people deal with conflict head on. They handle the toughest issues and conversations first thing each and every day. As a result, these people are less stressed because they quickly put conflict behind them, and are deemed more competent than their more avoidant colleagues. People respect that these people take on the issues of the day, and refuse to live with the 800 pound gorilla in the room. Moreover, the actual conflict or conversation seldom turns out as awful as the avoider had feared when it is finally addressed.

So tip #7 is to do the worst things first each and every day, and you will be loved and respected by your colleagues, you will sleep better, and you will be extremely effective.

Next Week: “Manage Your Time and Your Energy.”