The Rule of Five

In our household we ascribe to the Rule of Five. For any given repetitive activity, one will be amazing, one will suck, and three will be just kinda… boring.

It‘s a pretty good framework to keep perspective.

I first heard the concept in the weightlifting world. For any given five workouts three will be pretty standard, one will make you feel like a god, and one will be a high-gravity slog. But you still check the box on that crappy day, because you know it won’t last.

Essentially the Rule of Five is a bell curve, applied as a mental trick. It reminds you to stay the course when things suck, enjoy the highs, and remain disciplined during the boring run-of-the-mill times.