5-4-3-2-1 Method by Mel Robbins

I recently learned of the 5-4-3-2-1 Method in the book The Five Second Rule, written by Mel Robbins. In the book, she encourages people to stop thinking so much and instead make it a priority to do the things that are important to them in life. Her advice is to stop procrastinating and overthinking and use the 5 Second Rule to simply countdown (5-4-3-2-1) and… do it. Launch yourself into whatever it is you want to accomplish for yourself. By taking the little steps, you can lead yourself into unknown (and maybe even great) places.

This book had me thinking about my own goals. There are many things I want to accomplish in life, and most of those things sit squarely in my control to pursue. There are little things that I procrastinate on and there are bigger things I haven’t started. I’ve never been one to call myself “consistent.” And to be honest, that’s not a great way to think about myself.

Mel Robbins talks about how when we take the time to do the small things, to push ourselves towards our goals, we can start to rely on ourselves more. It feels good to show up for yourself in meaningful ways and to push yourself to be the best version of you that you can be. It’s important to explore all that life is calling you towards.

So many times I have allowed myself to never start something because I don’t know how or I’m scared of what others might think (I spoke a little more about this in my 52 Weeks of Writing post). But, this method teaches your brain and your body to just move. Don’t think about anything and just go for it! I remember a mentor of mine, my first manager at Cisco, told me “perfect is the enemy of the good,” and it’s always been a good reminder that things don’t have to be perfect to be good. I’ve stopped myself from starting something many times because I wasn’t fully “ready.” Or, I may have started something and quit because I lost momentum and didn’t value the process. The idea here is to just start the thing and then try your best to keep showing up for yourself. Don’t think about it, count down (5-4-3-2-1), and continue to work at it. Stop making excuses.

I’ve found myself wondering if I can stick to my commitment this year to publish a blog post every week for 52 weeks. I just started, but every week I continue to find little moments to write, publish on my blog, and create my images in Canva for Instagram. It feels good to accomplish it. It would be simple for me to fall back into my old pattern. I have so much going on with my family, and I will be back at work again soon after my maternity leave is over. I could easily put this on the back burner. But, I continue to implement the Five Second Rule and just do it! I made a commitment, and all I did was take the initiative to start and promise myself that I would try my best.

Another point that was made in the book is how when we show up for ourselves, we build confidence. My goal this year is to write and publish this blog so that I can express myself in ways that feel good. I know that by sticking to this goal and putting myself out there in front of friends, family, and maybe even some strangers, my confidence builds. I can prove to myself that if I am consistent, I can do the hard things. I will strive to learn and grow a little more every day.

Mel Robbins also talks about finding our passions by exploring the things that interest us, taking the initiative to start, and then continuing to move forward with the ones that really excite and energize us. Figuring out what you enjoy can be a process, and there are times when I just want to know it all upfront — will I like this? Is this worth my time and effort? How do I get started? What if I fall off? What a waste of time and energy to focus on those thoughts! Instead, I am encouraging myself to take small steps today, in the present, and forget about the future.

So many times I’ve questioned my purpose in life. And what I’m realizing is that I need and want to lean into things that interest me. My purpose is to be here on earth, to create and explore, learn, and teach, and grow. Everyone has their own unique voice, and it’s important to remember that I can and should share my voice. By taking the initiative to start pursuing our goals, we can learn to be proud of ourselves and find the things we are truly passionate about.

It’s been really helpful for me to create lists of the things I want to do, big and small. This helps me keep track of all my goals and then whenever I have a free moment, it’s easy for me to countdown and tackle something on the list. It’s also very helpful to get the idea out of my head and onto paper, so I have less clutter in my mind. For this blog, I write down ideas in my notes app as soon as I think of them so I know I’ll have plenty of topics to cover throughout the weeks. This helps keep me accountable.

It’s important to remember that it doesn’t have to be a big, huge project to tackle. Sometimes it’s the small things that can make us feel accomplished. Some other things I’ve been able to start lately: my pelvic floor exercises (another post on that later), buying a new car, finishing more books, and completing simple things around the house like organizing and giving things away.

I will continue adding to my lists more things I want to start, and I’m pushing myself to do the harder things that are out of my comfort zone. These are the things that will add up and create richness to my life. So, what’s on your list to try this year?