My impression is that we tend to look for an easy fix. It is part of our DNA to walk the path of least resistance. We are wired that way because a metabolic draining activity could have meant the difference between life and death back in the old days. It is ok to do so but I think it is often done in the wrong area. That is why you probably do not need a new pair of running shoes.
If you don’t know the taste of what you are making, you cannot make it.
Oona Tempest, female Sushi chef in NYC
More depth can pay off
Buying this new pair of running shoes with the latest shock absorption technology, for instance, most likely will not fix the problem of a painful knee. A thorough look at your bodily mobility, muscle imbalances and running style could do. That easy path is followed for many issues we are trying to solve in our lives:
- Going to the doctor’s and get the pill for that little pain instead of looking for the root cause.
- Doing a little bit of 30-second stretching per leg (instead of a regular mobility routine) after running to feel like “you’ve done everything for your body!”
- Outsourcing your financial life to an “expert” instead of getting a book and learn about it. Believe me, it is not that hard.
Do not get me wrong, all these examples can have a positive impact and it is a good idea to consult a specialist when in doubt. It is natural to do it because our brains are conditioned to make us act like this. Dr Lisa Feldman Barrett in her conversation with Jordan Harbinger puts it this way: “So when you’re in any situation where things are unexpected or novel and uncertain, so unexpected or uncertain, ambiguous, it’s going to be more metabolically expensive for you.” Thus, it is cheaper for us to go for the known than for the novel experience – at least for our metabolism. But is it more rewarding?
I’ve come to believe that working through something is the only way to explore the idea maze. Everything else is commentary.
Karl Yang
I think though, that in matters like for example, health or finance, people cannot go wrong to dive deeper into and gain a thorough understanding of what is going on inside their bodies or bank accounts. Get the basics right and become smart patients and customers if you like to put it this way.
Simplicity over complexity
On the other hand, we tend to praise the complexity, the difficulty and the “bling-bling” in a solution. Take a 100-page business plan, for instance, that most likely will end up in a drawer as opposed to a simple, understandable business model canvas. Have a look at complex ERP-software solutions where you can analyse every aspect of a business, but people will ultimately rely on their gut feeling when to decide. Or consider the wish of changing a habit: we start full of energy about all the planned habits, set out a plan and want every change to happen overnight. The consequence? By day three the motivation is gone due to too much complexity.
Everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face.
Mike Tyson
Simple solutions are not praised very often although people tend to be not that good at dealing with complexity. They just try to sell it to add more artificial meaning. But if we stripped away all the unnecessary components of a complex solution where a simple would suffice then we must admit that maybe resources have been wasted or the story, we have told ourselves in the past years has some flaws.
We can think in essentials
If we started to think about where it really pays off to dig deep and which areas can be fixed with a simple (read fast) solution in the first place much time and energy could be saved. That is why I embrace many ideas of people like Dieter Rams and Greg McKeown. Or contemporaries like The Minimalists and Matt D’Avella. These role models start by asking what is essential, what brings joy and positivity. They actively reflect on what they have done in the past and how time and money can be leveraged to live the life you really want.
If we cut out the noise, the ongoing chatter in our heads and start to see and think about the process as an advantageous journey instead of looking for the quick fix maybe future results will be more in line with what we want.
Blogpost Photo by Arwan Sutanto on Unsplash.
