How the book “The 5 second Rule” changed my life.

I could not imagine that reading a book could change my life. I mean it is something that I have heard about but such things happen in movies or books, not in my life! 

The year 2020

In 2020 when the world was crashing down and everyone felt broken, financially and mentally. My life had only one concern, how on earth will I survive without going out of the house? Yes, not the pandemic or the disease and not even my financial state (which was something to feel stressed about), I was just worried about not being able to step out of my house.

Yes, something that stupid was my concern.

About me

Before jumping on to how the 5 second rule helped me, I would like to give a clear picture of me.

 So I appeared to be a happy woman. The woman who loves to laugh, party and chit chat with anyone and everyone. But the fact of the situation was that I loved doing all those things because it helped me not to think about myself. I was running away from my situation. 

The thought of not socializing was killing me softly because it made me question myself. I didn’t want to sit alone and wonder that I am doing absolutely nothing in my life. 

Yes, that’s a fact. I was afraid to encounter my failure with myself. 

Have you ever felt afraid of change

Have you ever made a mistake and tried to run away from it? Or that feeling of knowing that you can bring in the change in your life but you are not able to bring it because you fear change. Well, I was constantly getting that feeling.

I wanted to be independent, be the daughter my mother would be proud of and most importantly be the strong woman my daughter could look up too but the hows and whys always stopped me. 

What I thought

My dream was crystal clear to me. I wanted to be successful and be the boss lady but how will I get to my dreams, never occurred to me. My thoughts and opinions were strong (they still are) but always felt scared to open up. I never wanted the spotlight on me because of my low self-confidence.

It was pretty simple, I knew about my problems and I was sure that I should work but I was so comfortable in my situation (life) that I just didn’t make any effort to bring in the change.

In this process, things that kept running on my mind were…where can I work? Who will take care of my kids? I won’t be able to work because all the good Multi-NationalCompanies are pretty far from my place.  We all have excuses when we fear change, don’t we!?

And these questions were enough to kill my confidence and my thought of working.

It was just like wanting to lose weight and knowing that going for a run could be helpful but the thought of moving out of your bed is so difficult that you think that it’s just impossible to lose even a kilo.

I was going through the same phase.

The Change!

Thankfully I am a voracious reader and writer. I have been writing and scribbling my thoughts all over the notebooks since my school days. But I never shared my passion with anyone, not even with my siblings! (Yes I was that confident!)

Only my darling husband knew about my passion. I needed a listener and who better than someone who had lost the right to be judgemental about my choices. (hahaha)

Every time I read an article, he asked”why don’t you publish it?” 

I always ignored him, because who cares about what the husband says? He has to appreciate me because he loves me a lot. Never did I once take it as a compliment. 

I constantly wrote and wrote. Stories about the people I met, parenting tips , some fictional stories that happened just in my head and of course a lot of wisdom thoughts, that I really wanted to share with people. 

Wrote and wrote but never published or shared.

Then came the The 5-second rule

Thankfully the book the 5-second rule written by Mel Robbins came into my life in the beginning of the year 2020. The book taught me to be courageous. It made me confident. It just changed my personality. After reading the book I finally realized that the small things made the biggest difference.  

Its not about the big decisions like marriage or buying a house, it’s about  picking up the phone, going to the gym, wearing what you love.

What is the 5 second rule book all about?

The book proves that if you have an instinct to act on an idea/thought but you don’t physically move to take the action within 5 seconds, the chances are that your brain will stop you. 

Not just the book, it’s scientifically proven too.

Let me share a few examples, have you ever wondered that to make the smaller decisions we take maximum time. For example, texting back, picking up the phone , saying no to someone, getting out of the bed. Small actions,right!? But we take so much time to think and rethink about them that our brain kills the idea of saying yes. 

Our brain is wired this way.

(To understand the rule better, you can click on the link)

How the 5 second rule book changed my life.

Honestly, when I first started reading the book, I didn’t realize how the rule could help me. 

It was pretty simple for me, I absolutely had no flaws according to me. So what was there to act on!? (Hahah) 

It’s amazing how we humans know about our problems, we clearly see the flaws in others but we are doing perfect in our head !

Three days after reading the book, I saw a contest on Instagram. The contest was about writing a short story on a given prompt. I got an instinct to act on it and guess what! I said 5-4-3-2-1 and clicked on  “participate.”

When the winners were being announced, I was there attending the live show just because I wanted to know who actually won. I wanted to re-read the winner’s entries. But to my surprise something amazing happened.

No, I didn’t win, neither was I expecting.

When the judges asked, “any guess who the winners are?” 

The messages were flooded with my name. I really could not believe that people were praising my work.

It might sound like a small joy but it meant so much to me. That one click of participating and then the appreciation from so many people made me realize the significance of the 5 second rule.

The new me

Now whenever I need to make the small decisions in my life like, writing this article , sharing it with you all, saying no to relatives for get-togethers, I simply say 5-4-3-2-1 in my head and do what my heart says.

And you know what’s amazing, that now I love to share what I write. Now I don’t have questions about anyone’s opinion about my passion for writing.  I feel confident and blessed and much more happier too.

I don’t feel bad about not going out anymore.

So many people know me and appreciate me,for the content I share.

Conclusion

The 5 second rule doesn’t make things easy, it just makes them happen it gives you the courage to be you. To grab your copy at Amazon Click The 5 second Rule Mel Robbins.

some more honorable mentions by Author.

Stop saying you’re are fine Mel Robbins.

Take Control of Your Life: How to Silence Fear and Win the Mental Game

by Audible Originals Mel Robbins.

The 5 Second Journal: The Best Daily Journal and Fastest Way to Slow Down, Power Up, and Get Sh*t Done Mel Robbins.

Kick Ass with Mel Robbins: Life-Changing Advice from the Author of “The 5 Second Rule” by Audible Originals. Mel Robbins.

Work It Out: The New Rules for Women to Get Ahead at Work by Audible Originals. Mel Robbins.

Once you start following the 5 second rule, you will feel confident. You will learn to find pride in the small things you do.

Cheers

Aakriti.

Believe in it and it will happen!

Instagram handle: @acing_momlife