Mel Robbins. The 5 Second Rule: Transform Your Life, Work, and Confidence with Everyday Courage. Savio Republic, 2017. 240 pages.

Author

Mel broke into the self-help scene with a viral TEDx Talk - "How to stop screwing yourself over." This video caught the attention of FOX and she eventually became a commentator on CNN.  This is her second best-selling book.

Benefit

The 5 Second Rule is her claim to fame.  The book in my opinion is completely unnecessary - except that a useful tool is shared with a wider audience [I, for example, would likely have never heard of it unless I read the book].  Unfortunately, the entire program can be distilled into one sentence.  When you need the courage to stop procrastinating and do something that you need to do, you can focus by first counting backwards 5-4-3-2-1 and just do it.  The entire book addresses the struggles that people have overcome in their lives using this simple tool.  A wonderful coincidence for Robbins is that the method nicely complements recent advances in psychology, leadership, and management.  Counting backwards to five starts an effective mechanism for habit formation, which can break addiction and set a person on a path to life transformation.  It really does work, and it's a shock to me that a person can build an entire career off of this.

Publisher

I feel like I've found a precious jewel.  Robbins published this book with Savio Republic, a house that publishes many self-help books written by life coaches.  It looks to me that many of these authors are first-timers, but most are at the top of their field.  However, it seems like there is room for someone to break in to the market here.