Thoughts For The Week - 2025.11.02
10 Minute Rule, Beating Procrastination with a Pomodoro Tweak, The 5 Second Rule, & Halloween Bonus
1. The 10 Minute Rule
A very simple rule “When you don’t feel like doing something, do it for ten minutes anyway.”
This is the starting point from the Balanced Discipline post "The 10-Minute Rule.".
Action Beats Motivation
Small Wins Rewire
Self-Trust Momentum Is Contagious
You don’t need the perfect morning, the free hour, or the big burst of energy.
You just need ten minutes, and the willingness to begin.Because small starts create big wins.
And big wins?
They start right now.
Takeaway Nugget 1: When you don’t feel like doing something, do it for ten minutes anyway.
2. Beating Procrastination with a Pomodoro Tweak
Feel free to tweak the ideas in the above Balanced Discipline post. I’ve written about this in the past. The pomodoro technique offers a structured approach to avoid the overwhelm of starting new tasks by splitting into 25 minute blocks. If you’ve cracked the 10-Minute rule you can go higher to 25 mins. Lower is also possible, 5 minutes reduces the barrier further, gives you even fewer excuses to get started. Once you’re started you’ll likely stick to the tasks far longer than the original block you planned.
Takeaway Nugget 2: Get yourself a sand timer. There’s something about the movement needed to physically turn the timer that makes the starting point more clearly defined.
3. The 5 Second Rule
Keeping on the same topic, Mel Robbins has written the book “The 5 Second Rule”
It’s a super simple idea, but also an extremely powerful technique for overcoming hesitation and taking action.
THE 5 SECOND RULE
Life is about the choices we make. And I have said over and over in this book that you can always choose how you act. If you have goals to get healthier, what you need to do is usually straightforward. Pick a plan to follow, any plan will do-and then 5- 4- 3- 2- 1-GO. The only thing you will need to choose after that is choosing each and every day to DO IT even though, as Anouk said, you “really really really don’t feel like it.” I said that what you need to do is simple. I didn’t say it would be cary.
I promise you, it will be worth it. Exercise and health comes down to one simple rake-you don’t have to feel like it. You just have to do it.
It sounds too simple but there’s a lot of science to back it up. The counting forces you to interrupt your overthinking left analytical brain. Instead you activate your more action oriented and intuitive right brain. This enables you to switch over into execution before doubt takes over.
Takeaway Nugget 3: Next time you’re about to say something in a meeting but you aren’t sure, simply count down 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and say it. Or put it all together time to start you 10 Minute focused work item: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 → GO!
4. Bonus Halloween Special
Takeaway Nugget 4: Which of these skills could you brush up to improve your leadership?
Have a great week.