'I tried Mel Robbins' 7-Day Reset, and one step is a complete game changer'
Picture this: it's Sunday night, you've just spent the entire weekend shuttling the kids to and from sports games or, in my case, binge-watching the latest TV series and simply trying to recover from another hectic week.
Now, a new busy week is looming and the laundry's not done, the fridge is empty and the house is a mess. You don't know where to start and the Sunday Scaries have well and truly kicked in.
We've all been there - including Mel Robbins.
Watch the video above.
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The best-selling American author and leading podcast host believes it is a symptom of a "world that is designed to steal [our] time and energy", but she's come up with a simple solution that she calls the 7-Day Reset.
I, like millions of others, recently jumped on the Mel Robbins train. If you're not on the train, you've likely heard whispers of her Let Them Theory or her 5 Second Rule circling around the internet.
The podcaster and former lawyer has a knack for tackling certain life pain points with a neatly-packaged solution backed by research for her listeners to follow.
Enter: The 7-Day Reset, which Robbins calls a "super simple checklist that will help you fight back against a world that is stealing your time, energy and joy".
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"Using the checklist is going to guarantee that you will have a great week," Robbins claimed on her podcast.
"Or at least you're going to have a better week if you didn't use the checklist."
On a good week, I'm usually pretty on top of things but then there are those weeks where everything seems to slip out of my control - the washing has piled up, I have no food in the fridge and it's easy to forget what day of the week it is.
Robbins' 7-Day Reset promises to help prevent weeks like that so I figured I'd give it a go.
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What is Mel Robbins' 7-Day Reset?
If you're not one of the millions of people who listen to The Mel Robbins Podcast, which recently topped the global charts, you may be wondering what the 7-Day Checklist is.
It is a set of seven habits Robbins suggests doing once each per week to feel less overwhelmed and more organised. The seven steps are as follows:
1. Do a brain dump
Robbins says the first step to getting on top of your week is to get everything out of your mind onto paper – whether that's the bills you need to pay or that birthday present you need to buy.
Robbins says jotting it all down can help clear mental clutter so you can make sense of what's really on your plate. She stresses it is not a to-do list but simply a means of decluttering your brain.
2. Free yourself
Once you've done a brain dump. Robbins says to cross out any of the things you just wrote down that you know you won't get to this week. You'll get to it one day, but for now you can free your mind of it.
3. Set one priority
Robbins says look at everything on your brain dump and pick one thing that you will commit to doing this week that you know will make you feel better if you do it.
Find some time in your calendar and commit to making just 15 minutes of progress on it. If you do more, that's great but this step is all about moving the ball forward even just a little bit.
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4. Plan one meal
Instead of winging it every day, Robbins suggests planning one meal for the week. Planning more is great, but the purpose of this is to build the habit of planning your meals in advance.
5. Schedule one workout
You know what they say – fail to plan, plan to fail. Robbins says to sit down and find a block in your calendar, even just 15 minutes, to do a workout and commit to actually getting it done.
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6. Plan time to rest
Robbins also suggests planning time in your week to properly rest without being distracted by a screen. That could be meditation, reading or a walk in nature. She stresses that this is important to clear your mind and recharge.
7. Connect with someone
The final step in Robbins 7-Day Checklist is to find some time in your calendar to catch up with a loved one, whether that's a coffee with a friend or a phone call with a relative.
Robbins says this is vital as "relationships are the foundation of happiness".
So, how did it go?
This past week I committed to checking each item of the checklist. All the steps were pretty straightforward and helped set me up for a successful week but I didn't really find any of them a game changer, except for one.
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I was amazed by how much of a difference the very first step on the checklist made for me. It just so happened that on the day I started the checklist, I was feeling quite overwhelmed.
But as soon as I put pen to paper and did the brain dump, I felt my mind instantly quieten. I quickly realised that I didn't have as much on my plate as I had thought and I felt an instant wave of calm wash over me. That sounds dramatic, but it's true.
As for the rest of the steps, I didn't find them quite as ground-breaking.
My priority for the week was to organise a present for a friend's birthday that was coming up, and ticking it off the to-do list finally did feel very good.
I planned to cook spinach and ricotta ravioli for my family on Wednesday night, which was a hit, I managed to get myself to the gym for a workout and I planned a coffee walk with one of my best friends one morning before work.
As for planning time to rest – this is one I suck at, as I'm usually constantly glued to my phone – but I decided to roll out my yoga mat and did a 15 minute guided meditation before work. It felt great to use that time to clear my mind.
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Each of these steps on their own are very simple but together they definitely helped me have a better week.
Going forward I probably won't commit to following her exact 7-step checklist every week but I do see the value in planning ahead to make sure things like exercise and healthy cooking don't fall to the wayside.
But I will be sticking to step 1, the brain dump. I knew journaling was good for the brain but I hadn't properly felt the effects myself until this week. I will henceforth be adding the brain dump to my life admin tool kit.
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