Happy Sunday! 😎
Do you have 5 minutes to spare?⏳
I'm hoping the answer is yes, because this week for Sunday Morning Rounds we'll be talking about a quick tool to evaluate tasks that can entirely change the way we complete them🪛.
When we have a list of tasks to complete, sometimes the hardest part is figuring out where to start🤔. We can try to create a gameplan using an Eisenhower matrix, or maybe even assign one of those tasks to be our mission critical.
But sometimes even those strategies can be too difficult!🤦
Rather than getting frustrated or abandoning our work entirely🏃🏾♀️, we should instead ask ourselves one simple question:
"Which of these tasks will take 5 minutes to complete?"
This is the premise behind the 5-Minute Rule, and it's an easy one to follow: if we have a task that we know will take 5 minutes, we should do it...right then and there✅.
The 5-minute rule is a great tool for completing action items for several different reasons. First, it forces us to analyze our tasks a little bit deeper and identify approximately how long they will take⌚. The barrier to getting started is then so low because we realize that after just 5 minutes, one of those items could be checked off✔️.
The 5-minute rule not only gives us a quick dopamine hit for getting something important done🌟, but it can also open the flood gates into tackling the other things on our to-do list🌊, especially since we now have a gauge for how long each item might take. Heck, we could even move these items over to a done list if we really need some extra motivation😁.
One of the areas where I frequently use the 5-minute rule is with checking email. While I may not always get my inbox all the way to zero, I know that it takes only 5 minutes to quickly look through each message and see if it's junk🗑️, something to deal with later🕔, or something to deal with right now🚨.
For a medical student, the 5-minute rule could mean reviewing 20 flashcards on Brainscape🃏. For a resident, it could be 5 minutes to check all the labs for their patients before rounding🧪 or to watching a video as a refresher prior to doing a procedure💉.
No matter the situation, the 5-minute rule can be a powerful barometer in helping us to find a task we can complete quickly and start our work on a high note🎵.
Try to use the 5-minute rule the next time you have a list of things to do and see how it works for you!5️⃣
🔮 Next week: There's an entirely different 5-minute rule out there that can also help to boost our productivity. Attend rounds next week to find out what it is!
🧠 More about Brainscape: Brainscape is a FREE app that uses smart flashcards and spaced repetition to enhance learning and improve long-term retention. Click here to try it for free and use promo code MOOSE23 for 15% off a Pro account.
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