5 Minutes Rule
Recently, I wrote about the 2 Minutes Rule, which I found incredibly useful for freeing up a bit of mental space. Today, I have something similar yet slightly different to share with you.
The first time I heard about the 5-Minutes Rule was in one of Ali Abdaal's videos. I can’t recall exactly which one it was (let’s be honest, he has a ton of great content). At the time, I thought: This might just be the solution to my barrier. I call it a barrier intentionally because, for me, procrastination, is nothing but a barrier.
So what is this "5 minutes rule"?
The answer is simple: dedicate just 5 minutes to any task you don’t feel like doing. As Ali explains in his video, this approach has two major advantages:
- Those 5 minutes can easily turn into 10 minutes, 20 minutes, or even several hours (no joke).
- Even if it doesn’t, 5 minutes are still better than nothing.
When I first heard about this, I thought, That sounds doable. So, I gave it a try—and guess what? It works! But don’t think of it as a life-changing hack that will completely transform everything. Instead, see it as a tool to help you overcome one or two battles against procrastination. You might stop after the 5 minutes, or you might continue and make progress on something important for you.
I often find myself thinking, Let’s do this just for 5 minutes and see what happens. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t—but even when it doesn’t, I’ve still taken a small step forward. And that small step today can lead to a bigger step tomorrow. It helps me sometime to just keep going.
Personally, I’ve come to like this rule even more than the 2 Minutes Rule. However, they serve different purposes and aren’t interchangeable. Using both rules in your life will require some consistency, but the results are worth it.
My honest opinion? I’m glad I discovered them both.
Be well
Begli