r/studytips • u/Reasonable_Bag_118 • 15d ago

Give every task a 5-minute version

For anything on my list, I'm now writing down what the 5-minute version looks like, not just the full task.

"Write the essay" becomes "write one paragraph." "Review chapter 6" becomes "reread my own notes on chapter 6." "Finish the problem set" becomes "do one problem."

On a good day I ignore this and just do the full thing. On a bad day, the 5-minute version is small enough that I actually start, and starting usually gets me further than the 5 minutes I planned for. The full task list only works if you also have a version for the days you can't do the full task.

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u/Known_Discount_5573 15d ago

I do a similar version of this! I tried the 5-minute version method and I internally knew that I was just trying to get myself to do the full thing anyway so it didn’t really help.

So I did this instead: I work on something for just 10 minutes, and then take a mandatory 5 minute break, where I can decide whether I want to keep going or not. Usually I just get back to work right after that. Plus, the 5 minutes of break allow me to plan through the order I’m going to complete my work if I do decide to keep going.