The Big Choice: Win Now or Win Later?
No one likes to lose, but sometimes we have no choice. Let me rephrase that. When it comes to meaningful achievements or meaningful progress in life, sacrifice is necessary.
It may come in the form of new responsibilities that you must dedicate time or money for. It may come in the form of enduring pain. Either way, you’re taking an L. It’s all up to you.
The crucial part? You get to decide when you take that L.
Taking the ‘L’ Now for the Future ‘W’
Do you want to take your L (loss) now or in the future? In my opinion, I highly recommend taking it now. It’s almost always more valuable to take your loss now and go through whatever pain you need to in order to make that progress or hit that achievement long term.
I’ll give you some examples to put it into perspective. Let’s say you want to achieve your desired level of fitness. Maybe you want to lose some weight or put on some muscle. The L that you have to take is the sacrifice in time and effort working out, or the time and discomfort of sticking to a particular diet. Whatever way you look at it, you’ll have to suffer in the beginning.
However, your victory is on its way later on down the line. Once you spend the time, money, and pain to build those habits, they’ll be easier to sustain and maintain over time. Building that foundation will make exercising and dieting feel like a minor habit, like showering or brushing your teeth.
The Hidden Cost of the Instant ‘W’
However, let’s say you don’t want to commit and take that short-term L. You want that juicy W right now. Fine, go for it. It’s your life. You can spend more time with your friends and family. You can eat all your favorite foods. Fill yourself a bowl of ice cream, head to the couch, and fire up the PS5.
That’s certainly more enjoyable and rewarding than the gym and the diet, right? Sure. Of course it is, because the reward is instant. The reward of exercise and diet is delayed. That’s what makes it so unattractive – that you have to put in the work and wait a long time to get anything for it.
Now you’re eating ice cream and playing PS5. That instant reward has a trade-off. Remember earlier I mentioned that there’s almost always a sacrifice? Well, there’s one here as well. When you decide to reward yourself with instant pleasures and entertainments, you are usually sacrificing from your future self. Your instant reward is the fun from the gaming and the pleasure from the ice cream. Your sacrifice might be giving your future self diabetes and obesity.
Making Your Sacrifices Count
Just know whatever you are going to do, you are sacrificing something for it. If you look at it that way, you can have a little more control in what you lose in life. That way you can make that loss worth while.
Ask Yourself:
- When facing a choice, what’s the immediate reward vs. the potential long-term reward?
- What am I really sacrificing if I choose the easy option now?
- Is this short-term ‘W’ worth the potential long-term ‘L’?
Finding Your Balance
Of course there has to be a balance, but I’d gladly give up a few years and a bit of money investing in a valuable training program that can land me a lucrative job I always wanted.
I’m happy to go to the beach less in the summer so I can spend some days off at home cleaning. There’s definitely value in entertainment as long as you’re not sacrificing too much and robbing your future self!
Choose your Ls wisely. Make them count! Your future self will thank you 🙂
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