I tried the 5 second rule
I used to be a huge self help nut. About 10 years ago I discovered the world of productivity gurus and minimalism, and during my long commutes to work by car I would listen to podcasts about becoming a better version of myself. I stopped consuming this kind of content when I realised that most people that make it are hacks, and rely on the consumer being in a position of need: once the consumer actually becomes a better version of themselves, they're not useful anymore, so these creators have every incentive to create new doubts, new weaknesses that their viewers can relate to. My consumption of self help content waned throughout the years, but at the beginning of 2026, I told a friend I would simply stop. It's time we stop reading self help books for good, I said, and actually started helping ourselves.
What happened is that the self help section in a bookshop is one I browse only for a few seconds. I dedicate my life to bettering myself in the few ways I already know, relying on friends and family instead of micromanaging my time. Sometimes, some notions I've learned in therapy come in handy. Other times, I feel free to create my own tips and tricks, perfectly suited to the reality I'm living. Other times, I take some lessons I've gathered in all of those self help books and videos and podcasts throughout the years and try to incorporate them.
Sometimes, as I find myself in one situation or another, my brain will remember something and think, hey, it's the right time to try this out! Without consuming any kind of self help content for a long while, I've been thinking about Mel Robbins' 5 second rule. I consider Mel Robbins a bit of a self help grifter, but I used to listen to her podcast. In it, she detailed her magical rule for living. The 5 Second Rule is the secret to changing anything about your life, says her website. The rule is this: whenever you're feeling any kind of resistance to anything (i.e. getting out of bed), you count backwards from 5 to 1 and then just do the thing. You let yourself count for five seconds, and then bam!, no excuses, you just go and do it. Why don't you count backwards and see what happens?, she asks a podcast audience on all streaming platforms.
So I tried it a few times and found that it's incredibly silly. My brain has absolutely no problem stopping after mid count, or not doing the thing after the counting is done. That is what happens. This post isn't to say that the rule is a hack and it doesn't work. Maybe it does for some people! But it's just proof that just because a productivity guru says something, it doesn't mean that that something has this magical, life-saving power. Robbins says that the 5 second rule has saved people from suicide, which I'm really happy about! But she's also written an entire book on this thing that can be easily condensed into a YouTube short, a book that sports her face on the cover, a book with the subtitle The fastest way to change your life, a book that costs £18.99 at full price.
I'm all for experimenting and implementing techniques new and old. Every time I try one of these strategies and it works, I feel glad about encountering at some point in my life, and go on about my day. When a strategy doesn't work, I'm reminded that this field isn't really made to help people—it is made to make money, and help you may get is incidental.