Ted Talk – 5 Second Rule

I like to watch Ted Talks on my free time or when I’m passing time (like eating, washing dishes, doing chores, etc;) because it makes me feel like my time isn’t wasted and that I’m learning. I like to go to sleep everyday knowing that I have at least improved myself and my life in some way–whether it be socially where I’ve built stronger relationships or caught up with people, academically where I’ve completed assignments or psets, hobbies-wise where I’ve improved either in motor skills such as dance or skateboarding, creation-wise where I was able to make, edit, or produce something, knowledge where I’ve learned things that I can apply to my life. Recently, since my school has ended, the academic aspect has escaped me so I have “free time” but I am still often dissatisfied because I spend a lot of it in idleness and not really improving myself. Sometimes I feel like having too many things I want to do limit me and make me decide to do none or scatter myself too thinly between multiple goals, whereas if I just focused on one thing I could complete it and get really good at it. So, in an attempt to try to go to sleep feeling more satisfied with myself and my self-growth, I listened to a few Ted Talks while washing the dishes today.

One that I really liked was called “How to stop screwing yourself over.” The speaker was a woman who is basically a “life coach” for people to “get anything they want in life” which could be to lose weight, to make 3x the amount of money they currently are, to buy a house, to find romance. At first, the occupation “life coach” sounds like farce so I wasn’t too interested, but I really enjoyed her TedTalk. I’ve linked it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lp7E973zozc

One thing she taught that really resonated with me was called the “5 second rule.” She said that if you have an impulse to do something such as to change your lifestyle or pursue a goal, then you must marry it with action within 5 seconds, or else your brain kills the idea. Depending on the what the thought is, the action doesn’t have to be huge–it could be simply writing a note, sending an email. The thought could be as small as going up to volunteer for something on stage or bigger like learning a new skill or huge like starting a life in a new country. I thought about the countless times I’ve tried to do things, but haven’t ever “gotten to it” because right after I had the impulse to do something, I feel extremely motivated and pumped, and then when I don’t act on it, it never gets done.

So, after listening to her speech, I responded to all my emails (that I haven’t in a while), finished my logo for CPEG, did some iMovie editing on the coding youtube video I wanted to post, and more largely started an eBay account and posted my first item. Making an eBay account is something I’ve wanted to do for a really long time. Even though I had this spur of inspiration and motivation, I wasn’t sure how long it would last, so I am really hoping I can keep aiming for my goals.