{"id":1394,"date":"2018-05-31T12:21:17","date_gmt":"2018-05-31T02:21:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.chrismackey.com.au\/?p=1394"},"modified":"2019-02-06T11:55:34","modified_gmt":"2019-02-06T00:55:34","slug":"using-the-five-second-rule-for-behaviour-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.chrismackey.com.au\/using-the-five-second-rule-for-behaviour-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Using the Five-Second Rule for Behaviour Change"},"content":{"rendered":"
How can we best get unstuck from a problematic behaviour? It might be frequent procrastination or worry, or addictive behaviour, or angrily overreacting to a situation. Most people can relate to having a bad habit or two.<\/p>\n
As a psychologist, much of our work involves helping people alter unwanted reactions or behaviour. I rarely hear of a new idea or strategy that seems especially useful in this regard, but a recent example is the “five second rule” as described by author, Mel Robbins. She described her ideas in a recent radio ABC radio interview with Libbi Gorr.<\/p>\n
Mel, a former lawyer and now a motivational speaker, described how she used a deceptively simple technique to help her overcome patterns of panic, worry and depression whilst enabling her to discontinue anti-depressant medication that she had taken for 20 years.<\/p>\n
Mel initially used her five-second rule when feeling depressed and lethargic, finding it difficult to get out of bed. One evening she saw a rocket ship on TV, which gave her the idea for a method to launch herself out of bed the next morning. She decided that she would count down 5-4-3-2-1 immediately after her alarm went off and would jump up before having any second thoughts.<\/p>\n
The five-second countdown worked more easily than she expected. She next realised that she could use the quick countdown method when she suddenly felt irritated in a particular situation, simply counting backwards from 5 to 1 to inhibit her triggered response and using the few seconds of mindful awareness to choose an alternative, more measured, response.<\/p>\n