My Story - Dr Prabath

By Dr. Prabath, Founder of Millionaire Health Habits & Owner of Unique Medical Cranbourne, Australia

Live Richer in Every Way

By Dr prabath

In this chapter, James Clear mentions how to stop procrastinating by using the minute rule

One of the most common obstacles to building better habits is procrastination. We often find ourselves stuck in a cycle of delay, waiting for the “right moment” or the perfect burst of motivation to begin a new habit or task.

Being a perfectionist, I waited years to start writing because I was waiting to be good enough and write at the perfect moment. I have been writing daily for the past few months, setting out to write only one paragraph every morning.

As a teenager, I loved reading, but as an adult, I struggled to finish any book for a few years. I don’t have time to finish a book, but I aim to read just one page. I didn’t get these ideas after I read Atomic Habits, but I wanted to highlight the minutes rule as a concept. It doesn’t need to be a time-based concept and can be a quantity-based concept, like saying I am doing one push-up per day or I am reading one page per day

I must acknowledge a universal truth – starting is often challenging. The initial step can feel daunting, whether exercising, writing, meditating, or learning a new skill. The mind resists change because it anticipates discomfort, effort, or failure. This resistance leads to procrastination, which in turn breeds guilt and frustration.

Imagine me over five years ago, who never ran or exercised. I felt overwhelmed and always postponed exercise despite knowing how important it was as a doctor.

The root cause of procrastination is often overwhelm. When a task feels too big or complicated, our brain tends to avoid it. We tell ourselves, “I’ll start tomorrow,” or “I need to prepare more before I begin.” But these delays only reinforce the habit of inaction.

The Two-Minute Rule: Make Your Habits Easy to Start

To break this cycle, Clear proposes the Two-Minute Rule: When you start a new habit, it should take less than two minutes to do. The idea is to scale down any habit into a manageable, bite-sized action that feels easy and approachable.

For Example It doesn’t need to be the exact two-minute rule mentioned in the book.
Example :

Instead of thinking, I will write a book, write a page daily

Instead of running five kilometres, go out wearing my runners

Instead of thinking, I will read a book this week, and read just one page

Focusing on these small, simple actions lowers the barrier to starting. The goal is not to complete the entire habit in two minutes but to make the first step so easy that you can’t say no. For the past ten years of my life, without breaking a single day apart from the one month I was in bed with an acute cerebrospinal leak, I have done exercise. Even on days I feel miserable, down with Covid, lack of sleep, etc, I still do a few minutes so that I don’t break my routine. My kids mock me about my habit, saying I am too rigid, but I don’t mind that

Why Two Minutes?

Clear explains that two minutes is short enough to overcome inertia but long enough to establish a meaningful starting point. This is a psychological trick to bypass the brain’s resistance to change. When a habit feels easy to start, you’re more likely to start it, and once you begin, momentum often carries you forward.
This principle aligns with “showing up” rather than “performing.” The emphasis is on consistency and presence, not immediate mastery or completion.
I have shown up for over ten years for my regular exercise habit despite the physical or mental discomfort I suffered from

Building Momentum and Habit Stacking

Once you’ve started with the Two-Minute Rule, Clear highlights how habits naturally grow. Often, after completing the initial two-minute action, you’ll find yourself continuing because the task no longer feels intimidating. This is the power of momentum. My habit of daily exercise that started over ten years ago is now followed by multiple small habits like writing my gratitude journal, having a protein shake, drinking water, etc.

Clear also ties this rule to habit stacking (introduced earlier in the book), where you attach a new habit to an existing one. For example, after you brush your teeth (an existing habit), you might read one page of a book (a new habit). The Two-Minute Rule makes this stacking even more effective because the new habit is easy to start and fits seamlessly into your routine.

I have started a new habit of doing a few wall push-ups and taking a big sigh breath before I open the door to see my next patient

The Importance of Identity and Patience

The Two-Minute Rule also supports the broader theme of identity-based habits. By consistently showing up-even for just two minutes-you reinforce the identity of “someone who reads,” “someone who exercises,” or “someone who writes.” This gradual identity shift is crucial for long-term habit formation.
I have for years identified myself as someone who wakes up early, someone who never misses having breakfast with kids, never misses exercise in the morning, etc
Clear reminds readers to be patient. It’s not a shortcut to instant success but a sustainable building of lasting habits. It’s about creating a system that makes good habits inevitable and bad habits difficult.

Overcoming Common Objections

Let’s debate on common misinterpretations of the minute rule or microhabits

“Two minutes isn’t enough.” The point isn’t to finish the habit in two minutes but to start it. Often, beginning leads to longer activities. If you never start reading a single page, you can never finish a book

I don’t have time.” Two minutes is a minimal time commitment, making it easier to fit into any schedule. I tell my patients who tell me they don’t have time to exercise to calculate how much time they spend on a single day on social media and to do two push-ups or wall push-ups every time they think of going online

“I’m not motivated.” Motivation often follows action, not the other way around. Starting small can spark motivation.

Final Thoughts: The Power of Small Beginnings

The key to overcoming procrastination is to make starting easy. Two Minute Rule transforms daunting tasks into manageable actions, helping you build momentum and reshape your identity one small step at a time.
My small habit of reading one page per day has led me to finish at least one book per week! Imagine the power of a small step
By embracing this rule, you create a foundation for lasting change. You stop waiting for motivation and instead rely on the power of tiny, consistent actions that compound into remarkable results.

Like a baby taking its first step and walking within a few days, you will be amazed to see how far you can go when you do that one push-up, read that page. Don’t waste years of your life not doing that one push-up, procrastinating like I did till my late thirties, and start now. With the knowledge and motivation I am giving you, I want you to be better than me one day