One of the things that has kept me writing for the last few years has been Five Minute Fridays. Even when life got busy, and I felt like I just couldn’t find a moment to spill words onto a page, I felt compelled to join the rest of the amazing, and committed writers and bloggers who join together nearly every Friday.
There have certainly been times when I wrote poorly, didn’t write at all, wrote but never got around to posting (darn you social media images), or wasn’t inspired by the particular prompt and decided to give it a miss. But most of the time, I made it work because it was only 5 minutes right?
I love setting goals, big audacious, nearly impossible goals. Go big or go home is my nemesis. Firstly because I love being at home (#introvert) and also because big is scary and big is a lot easier to talk yourself out of. But small, small is hard to ignore.
Small is as easy to do as it is not to do. Click To TweetI find myself wondering if I could apply the philosophy of Five Minute Friday to other things in my life. I’ve done it with exercise in the past. (My favorite fitness site actually has a whole collection of 5 minute workouts). I certainly could use it for writing more regularly. If I wrote for five minutes everyday, that’s certainly preferably to not writing at all most days. Some days it might be more than five minutes, but building the good habit more important than high output.
It works with things like brushing or flossing our teeth. I once read a productivity guru who said a great rule of thumb for dealing with tasks you are avoiding is if it takes less than 10 minutes (or in this case, 5 minutes) just do it when you think of it. Sort the mail when you pick it up. Take out the garbage when you see it’s full. Reply to that email. Fill out that random form or survey. Empty the dishwasher. Pick up the random items that have accumulated by the front door. I’m trying to teach this to my kids too. Sometimes I tell them I’ll time a task, so they can see how it really is faster just to do it, than whine about it.
If you are struggling with a prayer or devotional life, there is nothing wrong with using 5 minutes as your guideline. 5 minutes of prayer a day is certainly great for building a daily check in with God. The same can go with your study of the Bible. Of course we want it to grow to more and do more eventually. But sometimes doing it small is better than not doing it all.
Sometimes doing it small is better than not doing it all. Click To TweetA five minute uninterrupted conversation with my husband, five extra minutes spent with each of my kiddos at bedtime, five minutes checking in on a friend when I run into her in the grocery store. I bet you can find time for lots of things you wish you were doing, when you downgrade your expectations to just five minutes.
Go forth and think small. What can you do that makes a real difference in 5 minutes? Probably more than you think.
Bethany, I’m a bit dylexic, and read your title as “Why Small Goats Are Better Than None At All.”
Sooo…….this is for you. I hope you like it!
I do love goats, and always have,
for they are much like me,
giving life a comic salve
on a trouble-bound journey.
I’ve learned to never turn my back,
and still less, bend down;
the billy’s the master of sneak attack;
nanny’s stealth has earned renown.
So I think maybe that the Lord
has set Heaven bright aglow
with all the lights He can afford
to shine upon my goat-rodeo.
So much faith and wisdom in me was born
from the sharp end of a goatish horn.
🙂 As usual, best comment of the day!
I love this Bethany and as a procrastinator extraordinaire it is a challenge so need to take! Thank you for the encouragement to think small to get things done!
I preach this to myself, and I figure someone else must feel the same way. 🙂
Love this! Great ideas