How to use a scientifically proven 5-second “metacognition hack” that will trick your brain into taking you from powerless, stuck, and frustrated to powerful, in-control, and motivated even if you’re tired and don’t “feel” like it
>> This is Part 3 of a 6-part series called The Superhero Code. If you want to catch up on other posts, check out From Zero to Hero In 5-Simple Steps (Part 1) and Positivity Primer (Part 2).
“It’s easier to act your way into a new way of thinking than to think your way into a new way of acting.” – A.J. Jacobs
Have you ever noticed…
How the most successful business leaders, sports stars, and superheros hesitate when there is an urgent matter that needs their attention?
They get all tentative, their ass cheeks pucker up, and they withdraw from the situation and do nothing…
Fuck no.
Of course not, because that doesn’t happen. That never happens.
When the shit hits the fan, the people we admire most always step up. They’re not always right and they don’t always come through, but they’re always ready to move — they’re ready for action.
Great leaders are decisive, intentional action takers. They don’t hesitate, over-think, or talk themselves out of things the way most people do.
Instead, they take action before their brain can stop them.
They have a certain carefree confidence and bold decisiveness that’s intoxicating to be around. Take Tony Stark for example…
He’s sarcastic, self-promoting in a cool casual way, speaks slowly, and regularly does outrageous things nobody else would even dare try. All these traits scream of a charismatic leader that’s loved and radiates a bravato reserved for that of — well, Iron Man Tony Stark.
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Another example, Michael Jordan always stepped up and took the shot when the game was on the line. He famously said, “twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed.”
Despite these misses, people love him for never hesitating, always stepping up, and having the confidence to shoot again and again…
Conversely, people crucify LeBron James for passing the ball when it matters most. People don’t remember the misses, but they remember if you don’t take the shot.
Whether it’s Tony Stark, Tom Brady, George Clooney, or Elon Musk… they inspire and motivate, get shit done, and are relentlessly kicking ass and taking names. It’s why we idolize them, go see them on the big screen, and want to be just like them.
We all know at least one person like this, they don’t seem to care what other people think. They’re always in-motion moving forward and as a result… they’re incredibly successful, charismatic, and popular.
But that’s them, not you. And you’re just a regular guy or gal. You’re not a sports superstar, celeb, or a billionaire. This is the real world and real life.
When it comes to “real life” things are a bit different. You set your alarm and get all amped up to go the gym at 6am…
Then the morning comes, the alarm goes off, and you hit the snooze button several times and skip the gym only to feel guilty later.
In real life, you see a high-powered executive from your firm at a company event and you want to tell them about an idea you have…
Then you overthink it, hesitate, and tell yourself you’re going to do it right after you get another drink… only to beat yourself up later for missing a golden opportunity.
In real life, you want to start eating healthy but you’re not sure what the perfect diet is…
So you overthink it, debate it, read a ton of articles, and follow several “experts” on Instagram… but never actually get around to committing to anything because you “need more information.”
Sound familiar?
In my own life, I wanted to become a fitness coach. But instead, I spun my wheels as a corporate consultant for years before finally taking action and quitting my job.
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Think about this…
- How would your life be better if you were a more decisive leader at home with your family and at work?
- How would your life be better if you carried yourself with the carefree confidence and boldness of someone like Tony Stark?
Seriously, close your eyes and really think about it. Dream. Imagine. Fantasize.
Okay, relax on the fantasy part. You’re supposed to be thinking about being a strong, decisive leader like Tony Stark NOT fantasizing about last years Victoria Secret Fashion Show. But since we’re on the topic, here’s a link to the Top 10 Angels of all-time.
Research indicates that simply watching this video will, in fact, raise your testosterone levels… so there’s that. I mean, if you need an excuse. My favorite, Candice Swanepoel, is so hot she looks like she came down from heaven and isn’t even human — yet she somehow wound up at #7 on this list. God was in a good mood the day he made her. Just sayin’.
Now that I have your attention…
I’m going to explain the scientifically proven 5-second “metacognition hack” that will trick your brain into taking you from powerless, stuck, and frustrated to powerful, in-control, and motivated even if you’re tired and don’t “feel” like it.
Internal Locus of Control
Human beings have this weird thing psychologists call a locus of control.
A person with an internal locus of control believes that he or she can influence events and their outcomes, while someone with an external locus of control blames outside forces for everything.
I first read about locus of control in Charles Duhigg’s book Smarter Faster Better: The Transformative Power of Real Productivity, which is a fantastic book. Interesting stories, research-backed conclusions, and actionable information. Kind of like my blog posts, no?
In his book, Duhigg concludes that the more decisions you make and the more you practice taking action… the more control you’ll feel you have over your life — and you’ll be happier and more productive as a result.
This is because instead of being stuck in Hesitation City where you overthink, over-complicate, and over-analyze everything…
Simply, making a decision and taking action (any action) gives you a first-class ticket to Successville where the beer flows like wine and the beautiful women instinctively flock like the salmon of Capistrano.
“There’s one thing that is guaranteed to increase your feelings of control over your life: a bias toward action.” – Mel Robbins
If you want to be a better leader, more confident, more decisive, happier, and more productive person… then you must develop a bias towards action. This will ensure you have a internal locus of control meaning you’ll believe that YOU can influence events and outcomes.
How can you begin taking more action today?
It’s easier than you think…
The 5-Second Rule
The easiest way I’ve learned to make more decisions and take more action is by using The 5-Second Rule. Yeah, this is that metacognition science thingy…
According to Mel Robbins:
“The 5 Second Rule is a form of metacognition, which means that it’s a way of tricking your brain in order to achieve your greater goals. Most of us live our lives in autopilot mode. In fact, research has shown that 40% of your day is spent in autopilot. When you’re on autopilot, you’re operating solely out of habit.”
In order to stop living passively out of habit and start being a bold and decisive leader like Tony Stark… you need to activate an area of your brain called the prefrontal cortex. It’s the part of the brain that’s involved in things like decision making, planning, and goal achievement.
Once your prefrontal cortex is activated, you can deliberately make decisions, take action, and move toward your goals instead of operating on autopilot, being passive, and missing out on opportunities. One of the best ways to activate your prefrontal cortex is… you guessed it — the 5-Second Rule.
How To Use The 5-Second Rule
Here’s how to use this seemingly stupid little “rule.” The next time you feel that moment of hesitation when you want to take action but suddenly feel yourself stopping…
- Take Control. Activate your prefrontal cortex by resetting yourself mentally. The easiest way to do this is by counting down from five. Five, four, three, two, one…
- Take Action. When you reach one, take a deep breath and immediately take action. Get out of bed. Make the call. Speak up in that meeting. Go talk to that hot girl. Whatever it is, just do it immediately before you lose the gumption.
It’s literally that simple, hence the name The 5-Second Rule.
You can buy Mel Robbins book The 5-Second Rule here, if you want more information. I highly recommend the audio version because Mel actually does the narration. And she kind of sounds like a funny, witty, smartass, midwest mother — which is endearing if you’re from the Midwest like me.
It’s an incredible book. It’s packed full of the science behind why the rule works and also contains about a million case studies. Mel gives many examples of people using the rule to do everything from landing a promotion to saving lives.
“You are one decision away from a totally different marriage, a totally different life, a totally different job, a totally different income, and a totally different relationship with your kids. Your life comes down to your decisions and if you change your decisions you’ll change everything.” – Mel Robbins
If you’re smarter than the average bear, you might be tempted to think that something so simple and stupid couldn’t possibly work that well…
Don’t overthink it and don’t outsmart yourself on this one. I’m a borderline combination of Einstein and Hemingway… in much better shape of course — and the rule even works on me!
Okay, I might have taken a few liberties there. John Romaniello probably just vomited, but you get the point 😉
The Spotlight Effect
The truth is, you’re never going to feel ready, motivated, and completely prepared to do the things that could have the most positive impact on your life. You’ll always want to prepare a little longer or take a bit more time.
This is because your brain is designed to protect you from doing things that are scary or difficult. And every single time you hesitate, your brain shines a light on that “thing” that caused you to hesitate and tags it as something negative to avoid.
It’s kind of like a bad version of Evernote with a really nasty computer virus… it just starts tagging notes with all the wrong labels. Not only will this cause you problems down the road, but it’s confusing for your brain.
This phenomenon is called The Spotlight Effect. Not to be confused with the academy award-winning movie… The Spotlight Effect is where your brain magnifies risk in order to pull you away from something that it perceives to be a problem or potentially damaging.
What does all this mean?
It means, when you want to talk to a stranger in bar or speak up in a meeting and don’t — your brain tags that event as “bad.” Your hesitation sends a signal to your brain and tells it to avoid these situations in the future.
So, when you find yourself in the same situation, it’s that much harder to take action. And with every hesitation it becomes harder and harder to take action. You magnify the risk to a point that you ultimately get stuck and simply cannot do anything but freeze up.
Then you’re fucked… proper fucked at that. You’ll be banished to a life in Hesitation City where you’ll preside as the Mayor. Your Chief of Staff will be Jon Cryer the ultimate weak personality and “beta male” of the big screen. He shined in roles as the anemic sidekick in Two and a Half Men and the flaccid Duckie in Pretty in Pink. Congratulations!
As a man, can you think of anything worse than being called flaccid?
Let’s put a bow on this knowledge bomb:
Tips For Your Success
- “It’s easier to act your way into a new way of thinking than to think your way into a new way of acting.” – A.J. Jacobs
- Great leaders are decisive, intentional action takers. They don’t hesitate, over-think, or talk themselves out of things the way most people do. Instead, they take action and move before their brain can stop them.
- If you want to be a better leader, more confident, more decisive, happier, and more productive person… then you must develop a bias towards action and create an internal locus of control over events and outcomes.
- The 5-Second Rule is the fastest and easiest way to get out of your own head, create a bias toward action, develop an internal locus of control, and take action like the bold, confident leader you want to be. Maybe Tony Stark used The 5-Second Rule?
- The more you hesitate and don’t take action, the worse it gets. This is due to a known phenomenon called The Spotlight Effect where your brain magnifies risk in order to pull you away from something that it perceives to be a problem or potentially damaging.
Start using The 5-Second Rule today to take action.
Don’t wait, don’t hesitate, and don’t overthink it. Five, four, three, two, one… just do it.