Everything in life is a trade-off.
Time in our work is a trade-off with time spent elsewhere.
Emotions that aren’t helpful are trade-offs with ones that could better serve us.
Working out is a trade-off with our energy systems.
The things we purchase are a trade-off with our money.
This or that. These or those.
We all intuitively and intellectually understand this.
But while we understand this, we’re also easily deceived.
When we see something that seems too good to be true, oftentimes our intuition about trade-offs goes out the window. We are drawn to the potential outcomes without critically thinking through the necessary trade-offs.
When something seems too good to be true, it means the trade-offs are hidden.
30-day programs. Multi-level marketing. Miracle drugs. Shortcuts.
Take Ozempic as a recent and relevant example. It has spread like wildfire over the past year. Take this thing, and all of your struggles with weight will disappear.
But the trade-offs were simply hidden.
Would all of these millions of people have taken Ozempic had they known about the hidden trade-offs? I have no idea, and it’s not my intent to judge.
Trade-offs in life are an intensely personal thing, and what’s worth it to one person won’t be worth it to another.
But the closer we can get to understanding the true trade-offs of our decisions, the more likely we are to be happy that we made them.
When something seems too good to be true, don’t ask what’s next.
Ask what’s hidden.
If you find value in the things I publish here, it’d mean the world if you’d share it with someone else. It’s the only way this space and community continues to grow.
✌️ and ❤️,
Adam Griffin