I always giggle when I think of the 5 second rule… in my head, I see an army of germs lined up ready to swarm over a piece of cookie… with a king germ saying “steady… 5…4….3…2…1”
But I’m not talking about that one… I’m talking about the one advocated by Mel Robbins in her book of the same name, which she claims will enable you to “become confident, break the habit of procrastination and self-doubt, beat fear and uncertainty, stop worrying, feel happier and share your ideas with confidence”.
Big claims for a little book – and for one single rule…
But you know what, although I don’t think this rule is a panacea for all our problems – I do think there’s something in it…
It’s a very simple rule. The basic premise is this – if we want to be successful, we need to tackle things that we don’t want to do – but over the years our neural pathways have been carved out, and we keep doing the things that we are comfortable doing, and avoiding the bits that make us feel uncomfortable. Perhaps we long to make new friends, but are nervous about starting up a conversation, so we hover with our traditional circle of friends at a party. Maybe we want to start dancing, but are nervous that we’ll be no good– so we stay at home instead. Maybe we want to drop some weight, but the thought of going for a run fills us with dread, so those sneakers are left lying by the door.
Our minds act like kids avoiding their homework or bath and it’s our job to parent them and make ourselves do the tasks we’re trying to avoid. And according to Robbins – we have a 5 second window between thought and action before that momentum is lost. Thinking about going for a run? Pull those trainers on immediately. Once they’re on, you’re far more likely to go out the door. At a party and want to chat to someone? Start walking towards them – by the time the 5 seconds are up, you’ll probably be standing next to them anyway. Want to reach out to someone you don’t know – 5 seconds to start drafting that email. Robbins says that if you leave it any longer, you’ll talk yourself out of it.
Personally, I think this rule is pretty cool. Ok, it’s not always going to be possible to act within 5 seconds of an idea – you can’t suddenly email someone in the middle of a business meeting although perhaps a hastily scribbled note will allow you to do it later – albeit within 5 seconds of revisiting that note.
Nor does it gets rid of the anxiety that sits in our head and criticizes our past actions (“Did I say too much?” “Did I overshare?” “I carried a watermelon??”).
It does however put an end to a lot of that pre-action gut-wrenching self-doubt that so many of us experience out of our comfort zones… (“What if I have nothing to say?” “What if they don’t like me”). You cut it out by simply taking action (and maybe worrying about the result later).
I know that a lot of the time I waste in my day is spent worrying about the stuff that I don’t want to do. On the couple of occasions that I’ve used this rule, I’ve found it quite liberating. Rather than putting something off and fretting about having to do it later, biting the bullet (or eating that frog) brings with it great relief and an enormous sense of accomplishment – and of course, once you’ve done one impossible thing before breakfast – the day doesn’t look so daunting…
I’ve resolved to use it for at least one thing that scares me every day. What about you?
5…4…3…2…1 …
