Take a 5-Minute action Everyday and Change Your Life
What does it mean to “take a 5-minute action”?
This practice is about:
Picking one improvement you want to make. There are endless changes to be made to move you towards your goals. Choosing just one that you can manage every day is far more powerful than trying to make multiple changes at once.
Breaking that one improvement into a very, very, very small and simple chunk. A chunk you can do in 5–10 minutes, today. If it’s helpful, you can use the 4-circle diagram below to break down your larger goal into practical 5-minute actions.
Committing to practicing one 5-minute action every day. That can be the same 5-minute action that builds, or it can be something different every day. You decide what works best for your life and your goals. For now, the specifics of what you decide to do are less important.
More important: you’re creating structure and routine, building a daily practice of taking consistent, targeted action. With that structure in place, the possibilities are endless for what your future 5-minute actions will become.
Why and how to practice
Make it easy. Choose “low-hanging fruit”: small, simple, practical, and almost guaranteed to succeed. So small and simple that failure seems silly.
Don’t start a big project or get over-ambitious. In terms of a small daily action, be careful of big ambitions. (There’ll be other places for big ambitions :)
Each day, aim for 100% confidence that you can do the action.
With small, daily successes, you’ll create momentum to build on. You’ll build the confidence you need for more and bigger successes. And that confidence will be grounded in everyday real wins.
Ask yourself:
What’s one small action I can take today that would make me feel just a little more awesome?
What do you like and what do you need?
In life, you are the expert of your experience. You know your body, your lifestyle, abilities, wants and needs better than anyone. You also know your goals. Based on what you already know about yourself, tap into your own expertise to choose your daily 5-minute action.
Pay attention to how you think, feel and act. Then, assess the progress.
What patterns do you notice when you make these changes?
When does it feel easy to practice?
When does it feel the most challenging to practice?
Take what you’ve learned to adjust your expectations and find the fastest, easiest track towards your goals.
Ideas for action
If you’re feeling unsure, here are some ideas to get you started. Remember, for the greatest success, pick one action you feel confident you can do on a consistent, daily basis:
Book a specific time or place to get your workout or stretch session, done.
Take one sugary item out of your daily diet and replace it with a fruit or vegetable.
Take 5-min to stretch at the end or beginning of your day.
Practice a new cooking skill or learn a healthy recipe.
Start a gratitude journal.
Take a multivitamin.
If you’re recovering from an injury or illness, practice your rehab exercises every day.
Add 5 minutes of mobility and stretching in between homework or big assignments.
If you’re typically up late, get yourself to bed five minutes earlier for a week, then another five the next week. Sleep is one of the most essential and productive things you can give your body. Don’t shortchange yourself! Read this about sleep.
Experiment. Keep it simple, fun, creative and practical.
