In 2005, I posted a trick I’ve been using for years called the five-minute productivity breakthrough.
In it, I recommend a quick way to overcome laziness and motivate yourself. It is to set a timer for five minutes and get to work for you best effort and only knocking out five minutes of your task. At the end of five minutes, you can decide whether to continue your task or to take a break.
Since then, I have been experimenting with different alternatives on the five-minute productivity secret. But I’ve concluded is that there is a small twist you can use it actually increases the amount motivation you get from it.
Virtually everything in the method is still the same, you still need a timer set for five minutes and you also need to put forth 110% effort for those five minutes of the time. It’s important to put in 110% for that time. You can do that can’t you? Were only talking five minutes you can do anything for five minutes if you put your mind to it. All I’m asking is that you put forth your effort and then some so that you are getting as much done in five minutes as humanly possible.
The five-minute productivity secret circa 2008
Here’s the new twist that I came up with that I’ve been using with good results. I set the timer for five minutes and I both for the hundred 10% effort for those five minutes but at the end of five minutes instead of deciding whether I’m going to take a break or continue on, I find it nearly 100% of the time I want to continue on. It is a driving force. Almost like Newton’s law that says “an object in motion will remain in motion until acted on upon some external force or object.” I find that I do not want to stop after five minutes.
But here’s the twist, I stop. I sit still for two minutes thinking about the project. This allows the motivation to grow while I wait. By the time I start my project back up after two minutes I am chomping at the bit, ready to get going and ready to move.
I would describe the feeling has something like watching a movie in the theater and getting to the the most exciting part – and then the power going out. You simply can’t wait to get back to to find out what happens.
Plus, I find that that little disappointment of the timer going off right in the middle of what I’m doing say “stop what you’re doing” reinforces positive action. A me explain, if you are disappointed when you cannot take action, is that not an argument for your need to take action? Or put another way most people are disappointed when they have to take action. You, on the other hand are disappointed when you cannot. Yes, it’s a mind trip of sorts…
“Now and then it’s good to pause in our pursuit of happiness and just be happy.” — Guillaume Apollinaire
So give the five-minute productivity secret a try. Try it both ways and see which way works best for you.
Which 5-minute method works better for you? Are you getting off the ground by charging forward for five-minutes and continuing your work? Or are you better off forcing yourself to stop after five minutes and letting the anticipation build? Which one do you find more effective, please let us know in the comments below. Thanks!
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