Some things seem complicated/difficult and hard to do. You may also have uncertainties about whether you can achieve it
E.g.: running a marathon; or improving motivation
The resolve cycle: set a 5-minute timer and just solve the thing.
Why does it work?
You want to be actually trying, even when there is no immediate need.
Resolve cycles are an easy way of achieving that (They make it more likely and less painful to invest effort)
One mechanism of its success: when asking “Am I ready for this?” the answer is often “No”. But when there’s a five-minute timer, the answer becomes “Yes”, no matter how hard the problem itself may seem.
The Technique
Choose a thing to solve — it can be small or big.
Try solving it with a 5 minutes timer. Don’t defer parts of it to the future unless they are extremely easy (i.e., there is a TAP in place ensuring that they will get done)
If it’s not solved: spend another 5 minutes brainstorming a list of five-minute actions to solve your problem
Do one of the five-minute actions to get momentum
Developing a “grimoire”:
This section lists many questions to ask yourself in a resolve-cycle. These questions can help for generating useful ideas.
Summary:
Some things seem complicated/difficult and hard to do. You may also have uncertainties about whether you can achieve it
E.g.: running a marathon; or improving motivation
The resolve cycle: set a 5-minute timer and just solve the thing.
Why does it work?
You want to be actually trying, even when there is no immediate need.
Resolve cycles are an easy way of achieving that (They make it more likely and less painful to invest effort)
One mechanism of its success: when asking “Am I ready for this?” the answer is often “No”. But when there’s a five-minute timer, the answer becomes “Yes”, no matter how hard the problem itself may seem.
The Technique
Choose a thing to solve — it can be small or big.
Try solving it with a 5 minutes timer. Don’t defer parts of it to the future unless they are extremely easy (i.e., there is a TAP in place ensuring that they will get done)
If it’s not solved: spend another 5 minutes brainstorming a list of five-minute actions to solve your problem
Do one of the five-minute actions to get momentum
Developing a “grimoire”:
This section lists many questions to ask yourself in a resolve-cycle. These questions can help for generating useful ideas.