It’s been a chaotic year for me. Many of my plans have been upended and I’ve struggled some with feelings of failure since things haven’t turned out the way I wanted. Granted, things are actually pretty good in a variety of ways, and yet I still struggled with my sense of place.
Recently, I ran across this super short clip by Mel Robbins, author of The Five Second Rule, about how to interrupt our autonomic responses to stressors with a simple mental trick. I’ve started implementing it and have discovered it works surprisingly well in a variety of ways, not just for procrastination as the video outlines.
The idea is that you acknowledge your stress, interrupt the pattern, activate your prefontal cortex (higher thinking) and then engage something healthier than your old pattern. In the case of procrastination, it’s getting off your rear and committing to at least five minutes of a specific chore. Of course, like going to the gym, once you commit and move on your choice, you’re going to do more than five minutes.
I even performed an easy search about self validation and in this article discovered strong parallels between Robbins’ five-second rule (not to be confused with the rule about food falling on the floor) and the power of staying in the present during emotionally stressful moments.
Personally, I’ve already put this into practice and have begun to experience some strong positives. It’s amazing how often during any given day I let my mind drift into self-defeating beliefs and negative memories. I’m committed to rebuilding how I think about my capabilities and impact in this world. Part of why I’m rebuilding Scroll is thanks to me letting go of the negative talk I maintain about “what am I really doing” with Scroll.
I think you can, too. Check out the video above to learn more about this power mental trick which I’d prefer to treat less like a trick and more like a powerful TACTIC that helps reshape the habits of your mind. More importantly, go get her book, The Five Second Rule, which explains in detail how her simple mental trick can employ neuroplasticity and permanently change how you use your mind.
To learn more about Mel Robbins, visit her YouTube channel.
