The 5 Second Rule Book Summary

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Key Insights

In “The 5 Second Rule,” by Mel Robbins, you’ll learn what’s been holding you back from pursuing your dreams. 

In today’s world, people procrastinate, putting their loftiest goals on the back burner. In this book, Robbins explains how to prioritize those goals with a simple technique that anyone can do.

Not only will the five-second rule, which Robbins created, help you achieve your goals, but it will also help you stop ruminating on worries regarding your future, so that you can move forward confidently in the direction of your dreams. 

A Technique That Can Change Your Behavior

Mel Robbins didn’t always wake up smiling when her alarm clock rang. In fact, at one time when she was living in Boston, she was unemployed, in debt, and struggling with alcoholism, which made her six AM alarm an unwelcome sound. 

This combination of things made hitting the snooze button commonplace. But one morning, in particular, Robbins chose something different; She chose to count down to five. Why? The five-second rule is a technique used to prevent urges. It gives your brain a few seconds to think about the consequences of your urges and actions.

With the five-second rule, instead of hitting the snooze button by habit, Robbins was able to distract herself from her anxieties of the day and redirect her attention to what would better suit her future. By continuing to practice this, Robbins was able to put off instant gratification to break a negative cycle and break her snooze button habit.

The five-second rule can be applied in a lot of aspects of life. Robbins also used this method to stop her avoidance of movement and exercise. She pushed herself to jog outside regularly by counting down from five. 

This simple technique is great for anyone who sits and waits for inspiration to strike, rather than getting up and doing the things that you’ve been wanting to do.

In 1954, a psychologist named Julian Rotter developed a belief called the locus of control. The locus of control is the concept that the more people perceive that outside forces are controlling their lives, the less productive they will be. Therefore, the more you feel in control, the more productive you will be. The five-second rule helps you to bring that control to your daily life in a quick and tangible way.

Oftentimes, we hear to keep an eye or an ear out for opportunities and to leap at things as they appear for you. But what if what you’re looking for never appears right in front of you? It’s not always that easy. Instead, we should be the ones in charge, creating opportunities for ourselves. Robbins coined this the “power of the push”, and it can be achieved with her five-second rule.

Ready To Feel Courageous?

You’re probably familiar with the story of Rosa Parks. In 1955, Parks was sitting on a public bus in Montgomery, Alabama, when she refused to give her seat up to a white man. Although this seems like a small moment decision, it was a defining and...

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