Want to stop procrastinating? Try the three minute rule! Psychologists say doing daunting tasks in a short period of time can make housework more manageable.
- Scientists say that if you become a pro at procrastinating, help can come to your rescue.
- Experts say do the terrible work on your to-do list, but only for three minutes.
- Researchers have found that the “three-minute rule” makes housework more manageable.
We can all be guilty of this—doing anything and everything to delay a task we know needs to be done.
If you have become a pro at procrastination, a little trick from psychologists can help you.
It’s as easy as telling yourself to do the worst job on your to-do list, but only for three minutes. After that, if you still can’t get over it, you can just stop.
Researchers have found that the “three-minute rule” makes chores doable and not too labor intensive, and actually gets most people to keep doing something for much longer.
Psychologist Dr Jennifer Wilde, an assistant professor at Oxford University, said: “When it’s cold and you’re watching TV, it’s all too easy not to want to go out for a run, even if you know it’s good for you.” But when people are told that they can go for a three-minute run and stop if they don’t feel good, it can piss them off.
Dealing with procrastination is as easy as telling yourself to do the terrible work on your to-do list, but only for three minutes. After that, if you still can’t get over it, you can just stop (Image file)
“Putting off a task like vacuuming or cleaning brings relief for a short time, but the longer you put off something you know you’ll have to do, the more stress and anxiety builds up.”
In a trial, psychologists found that the 20-minute rule was still too hard. But when participants tried three minutes, 98 percent continued to work longer.
Dr. Wilde, author of Be Extraordinary: 7 Key Skills to Take Your Life from Ordinary to Extraordinary, said, “Three minutes quickly turns into six or nine minutes, and basically, before you know it, the task is done.”
Presenting the concept at the New Scientist Live science festival in Manchester, she added: “Trying to get away for three minutes will get rid of avoidance thinking and it will be easier for you to focus on the task at hand.”
The three-minute rule was inspired by the successful suggestion that people exercise for short periods of time instead of long sessions at the gym to improve their fitness.
This method has been found to help with phobias, such as asking someone with arachnophobia to hold a spider for three minutes.
It also works for people who are shy or have social phobia if they are advised to go to a party for just three minutes.
This method has been found to help with phobias, such as asking someone with arachnophobia to hold a spider for three minutes (image from file)
Psychologists say that procrastination has become a major source of modern stress.
They say that when someone takes on a routine task they fear, they quickly realize it’s not as bad as they feared.
But when they keep postponing it for days and weeks, they miss out on the “successful experience” of doing this task, so it seems even more unattainable.
Dr. Wilde said, “I use it for everything from washing dishes to working out at the gym.”