How to Eat an Elephant

No need to get squeamish- this is just a metaphor (comparing two dissimilar things without using the words like, as, or than). In this metaphor, the "elephant" is a big project, and "eating" it is accomplishing that large project or reaching the goal.

For me, my "elephant" is currently finding a new job. If I tried to eat that large elephant in one day, not only would I get a stomachache but I'd also get pretty frustrated because it's just not possible to do all at once.

So, to "eat the elephant," I'm just going to take bites: I will break up the huge project into small tasks that I can accomplish one by one. It is like cutting up a large piece of (elephant) meat, and eating each piece one at a time. Eventually you'll have eaten the whole thing, right?

Examples of manageable bite-sized tasks I can make from my whole elephant include:

• Updating my resume.
• Applying to 3 jobs per day.
• Calling one school that does not have a posted job, or calling one school to follow up on a job I've already applied for.

These are bites I can take today, tomorrow, and each day until my job-finding elephant is all gone. 

In terms of how we can apply this same strategy to schoolwork or the life of a child or teenager, it might be pretty clear already: take a large project or assignment (ex. an assigned summer reading book, cleaning your room) and instead of trying to tackle it all at once, break it up into pieces.
For example:

• Divide the number of pages in the assigned book by 5 or 10, and read that many pages each day so the book will be done within those 5 or 10 days. 
• Start by picking up and putting away all of the clothing in your room.
  • Then, pick up and put away everything that is on the floor.
  • Then, make your bed. 
  • Then, throw out or recycle anything you no longer want or need in your room.

These elephant tasks can seem overwhelming if you look at them as a whole. Like, how am I supposed to eat that whole huge mammal?! But, if you break it up into bite-sized pieces and chew carefully, the elephant will be a whole lot easier to swallow.  Then, you can sit back, relax, and digest!

*Note: the elephant metaphor was borrowed from a great video from WellCast that I've used with my own students. The video can be found here.