Why You Need The 24 Hour Rule
If the year 2020 has taught me anything, it is to understand the value of time and to direct my energy towards the right things. Through all the ups and downs of the year 2020, I can say with my whole chest that it’s been an emotional roller-coaster for many of us.
Here is where we insert the 24-hour rule. As I was watching The Playbook, A Coach’s Rules of Life on Netflix, Coach Dawn Staley of the South Carolina University basketball team explained the value of the 24-hour rule which I had to share immediately with the people. This rule right here is a game-changer. The term might be familiar to some of you but I’ll give you my remix of it in three minutes or less. Start the clock.
Why 24 Hours?
The 24-hour rule is best utilized after something has directly affected you. Think of the times you had a bad day at work and now it’s impacting your mood for the rest of the day. Or you did bad on a test that you didn’t study for but you still felt the professor should have eased up and made the test open book since classes are now online for all students (online school has been rubbish so far).
The 24-hour rule is a grounding technique. It only allows you 24 hours to keep something on your mind, before letting it go and moving on from it for the better. Think of it as a way to not get too down or too high on a situation that has happened to you. It is about giving you enough time to balance out the emotions coming from a given situation.
Think of all the ups and downs you go through daily, monthly, even yearly. It takes a lot out of you right? Little things can start to get to you and once it builds, it’s never a nice sight. But using 24 hours to diffuse the situation is the ideal approach to eliminate the little things before they start to get out of hand.
The Exceptions
Now, extreme things do happen, and some things will take longer than 24 hours to fully process. Many situations will require you to process things for longer before making any rash decisions. As we know, there are exceptions to every rule (especially in the English language…) but with the circumstances of the world right now, the 24-hour rule can help filter out what is truly impactful towards your life and what is not.
Energy directed towards the wrong thing for too long can be extremely harmful. Sometimes all you need is 24 hours or less to process the scenario properly before moving on from it. You know the feeling when you allow something to linger in your mind unnecessarily? It limits you from moving on from the situation you are stuck in. Give it to 24 hours and watch how quickly you can move past it.
Keep It Simple
Think of all the overthinking you can limit by just taking the day to think about something and realize “Okay, it wasn’t that serious, I am over it” the next day. You just needed some time to think it over but now it’s within a given time frame.
There are better things to keep your brain focused and alert. Especially towards the new year now upon us, use the 24-hour rule to declutter your mind. You’ll see the difference in how you think once you apply this rule. Now stop the clock.
Thank you for reading. Feel free to leave a comment of what you think on this rule! Share with a friend and answer the question below!
Do You Believe In The 24 Hour Rule?
Originally posted at https://timelessthoughts.ca/2020/12/30/the-24-hour-rule/
