The Five-Second Rule Will Completely Fix Your Life

This morning, I set my alarm for 7 a.m.

Well, technically, last night I set my alarm for 7 a.m.

I put my phone on the other side of the room so that when it went off, I’d have to get out of bed to turn it off.

Perfect plan.

Then 7 a.m. came.

My alarm went off.

I got out of bed, walked across the room, picked up my phone, turned the alarm off…

And went straight back to bed.

Almost unconsciously.

Which was a problem, because I actually really needed to wake up today.

And this has been a problem basically my entire life.

Until I started using the five-second rule.

And this doesn’t just work for sleeping.

It works for almost anything where you know you need to do something, but for some reason you just can’t make yourself fucking do it.

And if you have that problem, you should probably listen to Mel Robbins.

Not Mel Gibson.

Mel Robbins.

Mel Robbins is one of the biggest self-help authors and speakers in the world.

But she might not have done any of that if she hadn’t figured out how to get herself out of bed in the morning.

Let me explain.

Years ago, Mel Robbins was struggling.

And one of her problems was getting out of bed.

Her alarm would go off.

She’d hit snooze.

Again.

And again.

And again.

Then one night she was watching TV and saw a rocket launch.

5… 4… 3… 2… 1…

Launch.

And that gave her an idea.

What if she became the rocket?

So the next morning, when it was time to get out of bed, she counted backward:

5.

4.

3.

2.

1.

And launched herself out of bed.

That’s it.

That’s the five-second rule.

And you might be thinking:

Okay, there’s no fucking way that works.

But try it.

The point is to interrupt that little period of hesitation where your brain starts negotiating with you.

Because usually you already know what you need to do.

The problem is the conversation you have with yourself afterward.

AI can draft the PRD and prototype the idea. Jira Product Discovery helps teams decide whether it belongs on the roadmap. Bring feedback and ideas together, prioritize as a team, and keep your roadmap connected to delivery in Jira.

Get Started for Free

I’ll get up in five minutes.

I’ll start writing later.

I’ll make the call tomorrow.

The shower doesn’t really need to be that cold.

The five-second rule gives you something incredibly simple to do instead.

Count.

Then move.

Don’t want to get out of bed?

5… 4… 3… 2… 1.

Get up.

Don’t want to get into the cold shower?

5… 4… 3… 2… 1.

Get in.

Know you need to start writing but keep staring at the screen?

5… 4… 3… 2… 1.

Start typing.

Need to make a call you’ve been putting off?

5… 4… 3… 2… 1.

Call.

It’s almost stupidly simple.

And I could make this article so much longer.

I could give you another ten examples.

I could blabber on about motivation and procrastination for another thousand words.

But there’s no point.

You already understand it.

So let’s give you your first five-second rule test.

I’m going to count down from five.

And when I get to the end, you’re going to click the button below.

Ready?

5.

4.

3.

2.

1.

Originally published by Copy John on Substack.