No, it isn’t fertilizer, though keeping your garden growing and productive might be a good topic for a future email 😊!
Rather, the 10-10-10 rule is a way to make decisions – particularly when you are struggling. This rule was developed and shared in a book by Suzy Welch. The concept is simple. When you are faced with a decision about how you are going to spend your time or commit to something, ask yourself these questions:
- What will the consequences of this decision be in 10 minutes?
- In 10 weeks?
- In 10 years?
It makes sense to use this when deciding on a job change or a move – you know, something big. But could we use this rule in our health and fitness journey?
You bet! We know our daily habits and health decision do impact us in 10 weeks and 10 years, however, I think the rule needs some tweaking. If I am deciding right now if I want to have a bowl of salted caramel ice cream or whether or not to do a workout, those same questions feel too long term. I mean really – will I really regret one bowl of ice cream or one missed workout in 10 years. Pretty sure I won’t remember!
So, let’s reframe the questions to a more short term view:
- What will the consequences of this decision be in 10 minutes?
- 10 hours?
- 10 days?
That feels better. More applicable to this type of decision. So, how would it work on my bowl of ice cream?
- What will the consequences of this decision be in 10 minutes? I know I will enjoy it. I like ice cream!
- 10 hours? 10 hours later I could be fine with the decision because I just had one scoop. But if I finished off the carton, I would regret it.
- 10 days? No big deal if it was a treat and I continued my healthy eating habits. I would regret it if that bowl of ice cream turned into a nightly habit.
These questions could be used for a variety of health-related decisions – exercise and sleep to name a few.
Silly, maybe…. but it really comes down to will the future you be happy that the present you decided to binge on ice cream or will this only make the present you happy? Give it a try.