Make the first step absurdly small
Popular, plausible, and much less tested than its confidence suggests.
Do this
Reduce the entry point until refusal is unreasonable: two minutes of the task, one page, one set. Permit yourself to stop there. The aim is to remove the decision, not to trick yourself into a full session.
Why it works
The rationale draws on goal-gradient effects, the fact that task initiation is a distinct barrier from task completion, and evidence that reducing friction changes behaviour. There is no strong direct trial of the two-minute rule as such.
Where it fails
Rated thin honestly - this is popular productivity advice with weak specific evidence. It also fails for tasks with high fixed setup costs, where two minutes accomplishes nothing, and it can become a way to avoid the real work while feeling productive.
How you’ll know
Track how often two minutes turns into twenty. If it almost never does, the barrier was not initiation.