The 5 Second Rule: Transform your Life, Work, and Confidence with Everyday Courage

Robbins argues that the #5SecondRule can be applied to any kind of behavioral change, from establishing a new, positive habit to getting rid of an old, destructive one. In this section, Robbins addresses the three most common areas people seek to change: health, productivity, and procrastination.

Chapter 9 focuses on the issue of improving health. Robbins argues that there are ample resources online on healthy diets and how to achieve any body shape people wish. The problem is not a lack of information but people’s feelings, which prevent them from maintaining a healthy diet. People do not usually enjoy strenuous exercise or eating bland but healthy foods, hence why simply thinking about wanting to become healthy will not help people enact necessary changes. Similarly, people enjoy doing things that “feel easy,” hence why it is much easier to decide to browse social media than to go to spinning class.

The #5SecondRule forces people to stop thinking about how they feel. What matters is only what they decide to do. Robbins uses Charlie’s successful journey toward weight loss as a case in point: For 529 consecutive days, he forced himself to drink healthy green juices and lost 176 pounds in a little under a year.