To most people, ten minutes doesn’t seem like a lot of time.
And honestly, it isn’t — that’s why we don’t think twice before wasting it doing things like scrolling through Instagram.
But here’s the thing — doing something for ten minutes a day, every single day, can completely change your life.
Am I exaggerating?
Not at all.
Think of this: Maybe you’ve always wanted to learn to play the piano or speak a new language or start that side hustle, but you just can’t seem to find the time — so you never end up doing it.
Sound familiar?
This was exactly what I struggled with back when I started college.
I wanted to be fit, but I felt too overwhelmed by homework and other obligations to focus on exercise — until I made some adjustments.
That’s where the ten-minutes-a-day idea came in.
And let me tell you, the success I’ve had following this simple method has been absolutely mind-blowing.
When I first decided to devote a tiny fraction of my day to working out, I was a flabby, average college kid. I wasn’t fat by any means, but I wasn’t exactly in shape either.
I was somewhere in between.
So, I decided to try out my idea — I downloaded a workout app and started working out for about ten minutes a day.
Why ten minutes? Well, it seemed like a reasonable amount of time I could actually commit to.
And guess what?
Over time, I turned my flabby, unimpressive body into a toned, muscular one simply by working out for ten minutes a day and having a healthy diet. It may sound crazy, but it’s true.
And that’s just one example. This method can be applied to literally anything.
The key, I’ve found, is consistency. Doing something a little bit every day is a lot better than doing something a few hours once a week. It’s a lot less overwhelming, especially on busy days, and it’ll help you build a good habit.
So, here’s an example: Let’s say you want to start a side hustle. Instead of telling yourself you’ll work on it for several hours every Saturday, why don’t you decide to get up a little earlier so you can work on it every single morning?
By breaking down whatever you want to do into little steps, you’ll be much more likely to actually do it.
I firmly believe that if you really want something, you’ll find ten minutes each day in which to do it.
Just think about all the time you might spend mindlessly checking social media or surfing the web.
Is that time really being put to good use?
I ask myself this question a lot.
Because the fact is, there are only so many years we have to go after what we really want.
One of the most underrated things in life are those precious minutes of free time we have every day, minutes we can set aside to work on what we actually want, or minutes we can waste.
The choice is ultimately ours.
I know ten minutes might not seem like a lot of time, but think of this:
Doing something for ten minutes a day means that at the end of a year, you’ll have done that thing for 3,650 minutes!
And that is a lot of minutes.
Instead of not moving toward your goals at all, you could be in a completely different place after doing something, whatever it is, for ten minutes per day.
Try this:
- Decide on a goal. It can be anything, but you should pick something you really want to learn or accomplish.
- Set aside ten minutes each day to achieve your goal. If it helps, try setting a reminder on your phone so you don’t forget. And if you skip a day, don’t be too hard on yourself — just get back on track as soon as you can.
- Record your journey through pictures or videos so that you can see your progress. And believe me, you will see progress.
Remember — you are capable of much more than you realize, even with limited time.
Start small and watch how your life changes by setting aside just ten minutes every day to work on your goals.
This article originally appeared on Medium. Read more helpful articles right here.
