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That’s all it takes… Those 5 seconds. 

The “5 second rule” is something most people have heard growing up to justify eating something that fell on the floor. While eating something right off the floor is probably never the best idea no matter how much time has passed,  the “ 5 second rule” can help you in more ways than just getting fed.

The “5 second rule” is something author, entrepreneur, and award-winning television commentator Mel Robbins came up with after a living a long life full of procrastination.

Robbins stumbled across a television commercial with the image of a rocket launching. She decided she would launch herself out of bed the very next day with the same speed and determination. When the alarm clock went off, she counted backwards from five just like NASA when they launch a rocket. She explained this in an interview with success.com

It worked.

So she did it the next day and the day after, and pretty soon, Robbins was counting down before every action she didn’t really feel like doing. In just five seconds, she was doing things that she would never do before. 

Counting down to 5 soon became her new thing.

How does it work?

Whether it’s starting your homework, applying for a job, or even going up to that cute girl in the grocery store, counting down to 5 leaves you with enough time to get going but not enough time to stop yourself. 

You then have a 5-second window to get started on that goal before your brain talks you out of it.

1. Start counting backwards to yourself from 5 to 1: 5-4-3-2-1.
2. As soon as you reach “1,” push yourself to move. You have to take physical action!

As you count down from 5 to 1, you’ll be distracting your brain from coming up with reasons why you should do something else instead. 

“ The 5-second rule is truly something I really am passionate about. This little “hack” has changed my life and has helped me  push myself to do things I was too lazy or just didn’t feel like doing. I usually do this before I start my runs because realistically runners don’t always feel like running,” said junior Alfonsina Santucho.

The 5-second rule works because of something called the habit loop. How this works is because from a cue, or a routine that’s triggered by the cue, and a reward. If you are wanting to change a habit, what you have to do is change the routine that follows the cue. The next time you’re cued to engage in a bad habit, use the 5-second rule to change the narrative and do it.