Stuck in Your Head? Try the 5 Second Rule (Yes, Really)

You know that moment where you know what you need to do, but you just… don’t?

Like when your alarm goes off and you immediately start negotiating with your future self about why 9 more minutes of sleep will make you a better person? Or when you’ve drafted the email, triple-checked it, then let it sit in your drafts for six hours because “what if it sounds weird?”

Same. And that’s where Mel Robbins’ 5 Second Rule actually helps.

So What Is It?

The 5 Second Rule is simple:

When you feel the instinct to act on something that matters, count 5-4-3-2-1 and move.

Get out of bed.

Send the text.

Raise your hand.

Close Instagram.

Walk away.

Whatever it is, count down, then go before your brain talks you out of it.

Mel came up with this during a rough patch in her life: “hit snooze five times, drink too much wine, no idea what I’m doing with my life.” It was kind of rough. Then she saw a rocket launch on TV and thought, “Maybe I could launch myself out of bed the same way.”5-4-3-2-1. Up. No thinking, no spiraling, just action.

And it worked! For her. For millions of others. For me.

Because it’s not about motivation (which is flaky af), it’s about interrupting autopilot mode and doing the thing before fear, doubt, or laziness takes over.

How You Can Actually Use It:

• Stuck in an overthinking spiral? Count and say the thing.

• Procrastinating that one annoying task? Count and start it even if it’s just the first two minutes.

• Scrolling Instagram and comparing your life to someone’s curated vacation pics? Count and put the phone down.

• Need to have a challenging conversation? Count and start before your brain builds a whole case about why now isn’t the right time.

  
  

Why It’s Not Just Fluff:

When you count down, your brain literally shifts gears. You stop running the usual fear-based programming and tap into your prefrontal cortex, the “do the hard thing” part of your brain. It’s a tiny little brain hack that buys you 5 seconds of courage.

Why I Recommend It (and Use It Myself):

Because it works.

Because sometimes we don’t need another journaling prompt or affirmation.

We need to just do the thing. And this helps us do the thing.

I use this with clients all the time, especially the ones who say, “I know what I need to do, I just don’t do it.” (Hi! relatable.)

This rule gives you the gap, that tiny space between thought and action, where you get to choose something better.

You don’t need to feel ready.

You don’t need to be confident.

You just need to move.

Try It Today:

Seriously. What’s one thing you’ve been sitting on?

Count down.5… 4… 3… 2… 1…And go.

You’ve got this. (And if you don’t have this, we can talk. That’s literally what I'm here for!)