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Study Skills
The 10-minute rule – time management technique
Study Skills
The 10-minute rule – time management technique
Study Skills
The 10-minute rule – time management technique
Summary
The 10-minute rule aims to help overcome procrastination, feeling overwhelmed or unable to get started by breaking tasks down into more manageable 10 minute increments.
First, you commit to complete the first 10 minute step. After that, you can stop working on the task, but having made a start, you’ll find that doing another 10 minutes seems possible, and another, and another…
Summary
The 10-minute rule aims to help overcome procrastination, feeling overwhelmed or unable to get started by breaking tasks down into more manageable 10 minute increments.
First, you commit to complete the first 10 minute step. After that, you can stop working on the task, but having made a start, you’ll find that doing another 10 minutes seems possible, and another, and another…
Read this article
2m
The steps
Get ready
It doesn’t matter how much time you have available, as long as you have at least 10 minutes you can use this strategy. Ideally you’ll have time to continue after the first 10 minutes, but if you don’t you will still find it easier coming back to the task when you’ve made a start.
Doing 10 minutes sessions several times a day adds up over a working week, so if working in short bursts works best for you this may be suitable. Try to do this frequently and you’ll find you are spending more time getting tasks done.
Set a timer
The next thing to do is get started. Set a timer for 10 minutes so you have something to tell you when the time is finished, this could be on your phone or a kitchen timer.
Start working
When you start working, clear away any distractions, and try to focus solely on making headway on your task during that time. As the timer ticks away, resist every urge to switch tasks, check emails, etc. Stay focused on putting in maximum effort for those 10 short minutes.
Evaluate
When the timer goes off, you are free to finish or take a break. However, the 10-minute rule is designed to help you gain enough momentum to feel like you can carry on with the task for a bit longer. After all, what’s ten more minutes?
The key to this technique is to overcome that feeling of being stuck and get your study time moving. Think about Newton’s First Law of Motion - an object at rest remains at rest. The key is to overcome that inertia and the thing moving. Once it’s going, keeping it moving is often a lot easier. The same is true for tasks, so set the timer to 10 minutes to get started, and then see how long you can keep it going.
Summary
The next time you're stuck starting a piece of work, try not to put it off completely. Instead, set yourself the challenge of working on it for just 10 minutes, then re-evaluate. You’ll be amazed by what you can accomplish!
Read this article
2m
The steps
Get ready
It doesn’t matter how much time you have available, as long as you have at least 10 minutes you can use this strategy. Ideally you’ll have time to continue after the first 10 minutes, but if you don’t you will still find it easier coming back to the task when you’ve made a start.
Doing 10 minutes sessions several times a day adds up over a working week, so if working in short bursts works best for you this may be suitable. Try to do this frequently and you’ll find you are spending more time getting tasks done.
Set a timer
The next thing to do is get started. Set a timer for 10 minutes so you have something to tell you when the time is finished, this could be on your phone or a kitchen timer.
Start working
When you start working, clear away any distractions, and try to focus solely on making headway on your task during that time. As the timer ticks away, resist every urge to switch tasks, check emails, etc. Stay focused on putting in maximum effort for those 10 short minutes.
Evaluate
When the timer goes off, you are free to finish or take a break. However, the 10-minute rule is designed to help you gain enough momentum to feel like you can carry on with the task for a bit longer. After all, what’s ten more minutes?
The key to this technique is to overcome that feeling of being stuck and get your study time moving. Think about Newton’s First Law of Motion - an object at rest remains at rest. The key is to overcome that inertia and the thing moving. Once it’s going, keeping it moving is often a lot easier. The same is true for tasks, so set the timer to 10 minutes to get started, and then see how long you can keep it going.
Summary
The next time you're stuck starting a piece of work, try not to put it off completely. Instead, set yourself the challenge of working on it for just 10 minutes, then re-evaluate. You’ll be amazed by what you can accomplish!
Written by Tim Jones
Written by Tim Jones
0:00/1:34
Summary
The 10-minute rule aims to help overcome procrastination, feeling overwhelmed or unable to get started by breaking tasks down into more manageable 10 minute increments.
First, you commit to complete the first 10 minute step. After that, you can stop working on the task, but having made a start, you’ll find that doing another 10 minutes seems possible, and another, and another…
Read this article
The 10-minute rule aims to help overcome procrastination, feeling overwhelmed or unable to get started by breaking tasks down into more manageable 10 minute increments.
First, you commit to complete the first 10 minute step. After that, you can stop working on the task, but having made a start, you’ll find that doing another 10 minutes seems possible, and another, and another…
The steps
Get ready
It doesn’t matter how much time you have available, as long as you have at least 10 minutes you can use this strategy. Ideally you’ll have time to continue after the first 10 minutes, but if you don’t you will still find it easier coming back to the task when you’ve made a start.
Doing 10 minutes sessions several times a day adds up over a working week, so if working in short bursts works best for you this may be suitable. Try to do this frequently and you’ll find you are spending more time getting tasks done.
Set a timer
The next thing to do is get started. Set a timer for 10 minutes so you have something to tell you when the time is finished, this could be on your phone or a kitchen timer.
Start working
When you start working, clear away any distractions, and try to focus solely on making headway on your task during that time. As the timer ticks away, resist every urge to switch tasks, check emails, etc. Stay focused on putting in maximum effort for those 10 short minutes.
Evaluate
When the timer goes off, you are free to finish or take a break. However, the 10-minute rule is designed to help you gain enough momentum to feel like you can carry on with the task for a bit longer. After all, what’s ten more minutes?
The key to this technique is to overcome that feeling of being stuck and get your study time moving. Think about Newton’s First Law of Motion - an object at rest remains at rest. The key is to overcome that inertia and the thing moving. Once it’s going, keeping it moving is often a lot easier. The same is true for tasks, so set the timer to 10 minutes to get started, and then see how long you can keep it going.
Summary
The next time you're stuck starting a piece of work, try not to put it off completely. Instead, set yourself the challenge of working on it for just 10 minutes, then re-evaluate. You’ll be amazed by what you can accomplish!
Written by Tim Jones
Prior to co-founding Booost Education, Tim previously worked with neurodivergent and disabled students at various universities and trained as an assistive technology consultant with AbilityNet.
Written by Tim Jones
Prior to co-founding Booost Education, Tim previously worked with neurodivergent and disabled students at various universities and trained as an assistive technology consultant with AbilityNet.