Minutes one and two — empty your head
Write everything down without sorting. Deadlines, errands, the thing you're avoiding, the vague unease.
You cannot plan around items still held in your head, and this step stops the list re-inflating every time you think about it.
Minutes three and four — pick one and two spares
Choose the single task that, done, makes today count. Not the easiest and not the loudest — the one with the biggest real consequence.
Add two more that should also happen. That's the whole commitment. Everything else is visible but explicitly not today.
Minute five — name the first action
For the top item only, write the first physical action. "Open the renewal email and find the policy number", not "sort out insurance".
Vague items are unstartable, and most failed plans fail here rather than at the prioritising step.
Then close it
Start the first action immediately. Don't re-read the list — re-reading restores the choice you just spent five minutes removing, and Mark, Gudith & Klocke (2008) found that switching carries a real cost in stress and effort.
If a plan routinely takes twenty-five minutes, it has become a way of not starting.
Frequently asked questions
Morning or the night before?
Night-before planning means waking to a decision already made, which helps if mornings are your hardest time. Morning planning reflects reality more accurately. Both work; pick one and stop switching.
What if the day derails by 10am?
Re-run the five minutes. It's cheap by design — a plan you can rebuild in five minutes is more robust than one you spent an hour on and now feel committed to.
Isn't five minutes too short to plan properly?
For a day, no. Longer planning sessions mostly add re-reading and re-arranging, which feels productive and changes nothing. Weekly and quarterly planning genuinely need more time.