“Is it easy?”
“Is it worth it?”
These are two questions that often get confused and asked in the wrong order. People tend to focus on the first question and sometimes never get to the second. But when making decisions about how to spend our time, effort, money, or passion, the second question is usually a far better determinant of whether we should take action.
There is one main reason why I always ask “Is it worth it?” before “Is it easy?”
If you first ask “Is it worth it?” and you then allow yourself to think about the positive benefits or the pleasurable outcome, the required effort will immediately seem diminished, no matter how hard it really is. By allowing yourself to experience the positive feelings associated with the reward, you “trick” your brain into minimizing the perceived work required to get there.
On the other hand, if you first ask, “Is it easy?” and then envision the significant difficulty or labor required to accomplish the goal, your brain becomes focused on the effort instead of the reward. By fixating on the work, we construct a mental barrier around the outcome that makes the positive benefits seem less desirable.
The Science Behind the Trick
Behavioral contrast is the theory defining how behavior can shift greatly based on changed expectations.
In 1942, Leo Crespi measured the speed of rats running to various amounts of food at the end of an alley. First, rats were given the food for free, with no required effort (no running necessary).
Next, the same rats had to run down the alley to get the food. The group of rats that had received the food initially with no effort ran faster than a control group that had not been previously exposed to the food. Presumably, the faster runners were fixated on the reward and downplayed the effort, whereas the slower runners had to slog through the effort first to get the reward.
To show contrast in the opposite direction, Crespi had a new group of rats run down the alley for just a small crumb of food. Then, the amount of food was increased and a control group was added. The control group ran faster than the other rats, even though the amount of food was equal for all of them. Presumably then, the first set of rats were fixated on the effort required for such a small reward, and even after the reward was increased, the effort to get the reward still seemed unreasonably large to them.
When we present the reward first, the effort to achieve it doesn’t seem as large. And the opposite also holds true: when we present the effort first, the reward doesn’t seem as attractive.
Examples with Real People
Ok, we’re talking about rats here which might dampen your belief in the trick. But there are plenty of examples of this type of behavior in personal lives, in business, in purchasing decisions, and more.
Losing Weight
Let’s say you want to lose 20 pounds but you immediately start to obsess over the negative stories about people trying desperately to lose weight, going through hell to do it, having to change their eating habits, and often gaining the weight back. You may not even allow yourself to consider the benefits of the outcome: feeling better, being healthier, looking better, reducing guilt about eating, being a better role model to kids and others, etc. Even if you eventually consider the benefits, they will probably feel less beneficial than if you had allowed yourself to ponder the benefits first.
Launching a New Product (or a new business)
Your product manager proposes a new product that’s been highly requested by customers. You immediately start grousing about the efforts required: you’ll need to coordinate with software developers (frustrating), get the CEO on board (time consuming), educate marketing and sales people (tedious), etc. All that work might sound daunting and you may not even want to start. But if you first examine the potential outcomes – increased revenue, greater market share, happy customers, professional kudos and maybe a promotion at work – you might fall in love with those outcomes and deem the effort perfectly reasonable, even a small price to pay.
Going to the Hot New Restaurant
Imagine that a friend proposes to go to a popular new restaurant. The first thing he does is talk about the food, shows you the menu, and reads a few reviews. You’re sold. But then you discover that this new restaurant is across the city and you’ll have to drive through rush hour traffic to get there. Normally, you might say “Nah, it’s too hard.” But because you saw the pictures of the food and read the reviews, your mouth is watering and the traffic doesn’t seem like such a big deal.
Three Ways to Use the Trick in Your Own Life
- Ask yourself, “Would I want this if I could get it with no effort?” This is sort of a mind trick itself in that it forces you to consider what it would be like to achieve the goal or get the reward for free. It’s an easy way to focus your mind on the positive outcomes rather than the laborious effort.
I sometimes ask my wife and kids, “Snap your fingers and pretend that it’s done. Would you like the outcome? Would you like to arrive at that point?” This is a rhetorical question of course and it usually results in moans and groans from all of them. I still believe in its potency, but I suppose I should figure out a better way to present it. 😉
- Consider the effort over time, bit by bit. If you’re trying to focus on the reward but the effort keeps creeping into your mind, try to break down the effort into tiny steps, over a longer period of time, perhaps days, weeks, or months. Again, it’s a small mind trick that enables you to make the effort feel smaller and less onerous.
- Write a description of the outcome or benefits. Writing it down often allows you to focus on the question at hand without your mind racing into other issues (like the effort involved).
The Effort vs Reward Mind Trick is a great way to help you think big and set big goals without letting the fear of a huge effort get in the way. If you have thoughts about this, or if you have other ways of focusing on the rewards over the efforts, let me know in the comments.