When one of the best motivational speakers in the world says that motivation is garbage, you may listen. If you hear the recently released audible original Coaching Series Kick Ass with Mel Robbins, this is likely to happen. 
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Don't just think, do! (Image: Vikalis/iStock/Getty Images)
Take 5 seconds to change your life
We are often hung up at the moment of decision: Do I go to the gym or stay on the sofa? Am I keeping this relationship or breaking it off? Am I looking for a new job or am I staying at my present job? It is normal to feel afraid or experience self-doubt in making decisions. But it's a choice to let these things stop you.
Your whole life is defined by what you do between the initial problem and the decision to act (or not to act). And, as Robbins said, the gap is about five seconds long.
-She said: "There's a five-second gap between inspiration and fear, a five-second gap between the time it stops, and a five-second gap between self-confidence and self-doubt."
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Robbins refers to the gap of five seconds that we widen or narrow. When you realize that you can narrow the gap by five seconds of decision and expand your life, you now have the secret to tapping your potential and changing your life.
Try it yourself! Think about some aspect of your life that you are trying to change, or a habit you are trying to develop. Now break it down into a smaller concept and answer this question: What is a five-second decision you can make every day that will help you code new habits? & Quote;
These five-second decisions occur when you do not succumb to the self-doubt you experience when trying to take action. In other words, when you feel self-doubt invading your mind, start counting down from five and then start acting. Now you have the basis of the five-second rule. For example, if you want to start exercising in the morning instead of dozing off on your alarm clock for the third time, start counting down from five and get up. Don't give yourself excuses and time to create self-doubt. Countdown begins at five o'clock and action is taken.
or, if it's hard to set boundaries, try using a five-second rule to help you say "no" and let your colleagues often hand you their work. If you're a pleasant person, you might ask them to continue doing so by saying yes.
Input: Five-second rule. Next time your colleague approaches you, take a deep breath, count, 5-4-3-2-1, and then say "No". Not reacting immediately interrupts your habit of saying yes to this person and allows you to make a five-second decision that will change your life.
or you want to start your passion project, but when you come home tired from work, you always make excuses. If this is really your top priority, as soon as you get home, sit in front of the computer, start counting down from five o'clock, and then start working. The trick here is that you have to count backwards. When you count down, Robbins says that your prefrontal cortex is involved, which helps you overcome excuses. Now you have taken a step to overcome the habits that put you in trouble from the beginning. It sounds simple, probably too good to be true, but it works. If you make a five-second decision every day to align it with this new habit, you will take action and succeed.
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