5 minutes is literally all it takes.
While there is never a single cause for procrastinating, one of the most common issues is starting the task.
This is where the 5 Minute Rule comes in to play.
The 5 Minute Rule goes like this:
Spend 5 minutes working on the task
After 5 minutes you can decide to either:
Keep working on the task for longer
Take a break from the task
The idea behind this is to overcome the hurdle of actually starting your task.
What you’ll find is that most of the time you’ll realize the task wasn’t as bad as you thought and you’ll keep working on it.
Now let’s take a look at the alternative.
Let’s say after 5 minutes you can’t keep forcing yourself to work on the task.
Then you can take a break and try again later.
Keep repeating this method until you finish your task.
Our brains usually work better in short increments since we get a little dopamine release after completing each 5 minute session.
My favorite part of this approach is that it’s win-win situation.
You do the task for 5 minutes and if you keep going after then it’s a win
If you stop after 5 minutes then you still made some progress.
So next time you’re procrastinating on a task try out the 5 Minute Rule and see if it can help.
That’s all I have to share for now.
Until next time, keep learning and never stop improving.
- Nadim