Hey Friends,
Question: What are the Defaults in your life?
What are the choices you make not out of careful consideration but because it’s the default?
Could be in things like: the Map application on your phone, your phone ringtone, your browser (though not if it is IE), your permission settings for different Apps, your privacy settings on Social Media, your mode on Twitter (I only learned there’s a Dark Mode last month), services you take when creating a bank account, the video settings on online players, the type of sauce you want with your momos, and so on.
You probably choose consciously on a lot of the above. (As for me, I go with the default on more of the things there than I am comfortable to admit :| ). But there are still lots of choices where you just go with the default.
And that’s fine! We’d probably go crazy if we thought extensively about all the choices we make. But it does demonstrate the Power of Defaults.
It is why Google pays a lot of money to Apple to keep it as the Default Search Engine on Apple devices. Yes, in general, people probably like Google more than other search engines. But it’s also that a sizable portion of the users simply won’t change the defaults on their devices.
Why are Defaults so powerful?
// Readings
The Power of Defaults
Tanay Jaipuria | 6 mins
The Default Effect is the phenomenon where making an option the default among a set of choices increases the likelihood of it being chosen.
Where does the default effect come from?
Effort: Choosing something that is not the default requires effort. E.g. Locating the default search engine on your phone and changing it. Requires some work.
Risk and Loss Aversion: The default option is seen as the recommended option, the less risky one. This is especially true when the choices aren't familiar.
E.g. You order a dish from a cuisine you have never tried before. It comes with a default sauce but you could change it to a different one. It’s more likely you’ll stick with the default.Changing of Norms. The default option starts becoming the norm. Example: In the countries with "Opt-in Policy" (you are not put in the list by default) for Organ Donation, the act is seen as a big deal while those with "Opt-out Policy" see it as not that big a a deal (relatively). We have also seen it before in How the Blog Broke the Web. The reverse chronological ordering became the norm when it became the default of the main applications that bloggers used.
We need to note though that the Default Effect is not good or bad by itself. It is just something that exists.
Now, how can we apply the default effect? In our decision making or when creating choices for others (e.g. Designing applications), we can remember these principles:
Understand that the vast majority will likely choose the default option.
If you really want to know what people will choose, then do not set a default. That will remove a form of bias.
If you want to increase the likelihood that the default is stuck to more often, you can increase friction to switch to another option.
The more complicated the options are, the more likely the person will stick with the default.
The more someone trusts the person offering the choices, the more likely they are to stick with the default.
Design for Default: How to Simplify Your Decision-Making Process
James Clear | 5 mins
In this article, James calls for the use of The Power of Defaults to live a better life:
If you design for default in your life, rather than accepting whatever is handed to you, then it will be easier to live a better life.
Here, James focuses on how the defaults in our environment influences us.
Related: Things Of Note 01
For instance:
If you sleep with your phone next to your bed, then checking social media and email as soon as you wake up is likely to be the default decision.
Or positively:
If you keep a water bottle with you throughout the day, then drinking water rather than soda is more likely to be the default decision.
Again, defaults in general aren’t good or bad. They are just things that influence us and can shape our habits.
James then goes on to list some ways we can design for default to create a life we want for ourselves. Namely through: aiming for simplicity, using visual cues, and harnessing the powers of opt-in vs opt-out at the personal level.
My Thoughts
It is interesting how this effect applies at multiple levels, from the little day-to-day decisions to big career decisions.
It reminds me of this section from: How to Pick a Career (in WaitButWhy) where Tim discusses how up until about college, we just go with the flow:
But before you can even address your general uselessness, there’s an even bigger issue—your pre-set path ended. Kids in school are kind of like employees of a company where someone else is the CEO. But no one is the CEO of your life in the real world, or of your career path—except you.
The default option after Grade 7th is… 8th and so on. After high-school, the default option is college. But after college, suddenly the choice is on you! However, I think it’s also pretty common to go with the default even after that. Heck, I also picked the default option of “Join a Software Company” after graduating.
That could be fine. But I think the dangerous part isn’t the default options per se. The dangerous part is that we never learn to evaluate whether the default option is right or not. That for even the big decisions in life, instead of a detailed thought-out reason (not necessarily correct for sure, but thought-out nonetheless), we make decisions based on: “It just seems like the next natural step”.
That scares me. Mostly because that is exactly my current answer.
Reimagining the PhD
Nadia Eghbal | 21 mins
In this thoughtful essay, Nadia goes over the thinking behind her decision to pursue independent research and her experiences so far.
For instance, reasons why doing a PhD didn’t quite make sense for her:
Her research focus was so narrow (mostly “how open source software is produced, from an economic and anthropological lens”) that there weren't many other experts. So spending 4 to 6 years gaining expertise on it didn’t make sense.
Academia didn't seem like a place which would allow her to bring her research to the real world as much as she would like.
It would also pull her away from her subject matter (software developers and companies).
She then goes on to list some building blocks for anyone considering following this independent research path:
Write your own curriculum
Stay close to your subject
Work in public
Build your own support network
Find ways to hold yourself accountable
Create artifacts that work for your audience
Resist the temptation to play "research dress-up"
// Videos
Why this font is everywhere
Vox | 10 mins
Interesting video on why and how the Cooper Black font is everywhere.
Also makes me appreciate the thought behind all the things I take for granted.
Bobby McFerrin Demonstrates the Power of the Pentatonic Scale
World Science Festival | 3 mins
Bobby Mcferrin playing the crowd. You read that right.
Awesome!
// Tech
Nothing is Something
Sandi Metz | 36 mins
Very insightful (and fun!) talk about how, when programming, a lot of things we see and mark as Nothing is actually Something.
A TL:DW could be something like::
Use the Null Object Pattern when applicable but also more generally, pin down the seemingly nothing.
Usually Composition + Dependency Injection might be better than Inheritance.
Aside: After a phase of reaching for Inheritance all the time, I am now unreasonably averse to it. Don’t ask why.
But these technical points don’t do justice to the way of thinking she is espousing. I recommend watching the talk itself where she builds up her point very well.
(Aside: It was at RailsConf. She uses Ruby for examples. But doesn’t really matter).
(Aside 2: Learned `zip` in Ruby and Python is from `zipper`. Definitely an `Aha!` moment)
// Stories and Poems
Let’s Tell This Story Properly
Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi | 22 mins
It is a story about a woman losing her husband. Not really. No. That doesn’t tell the story properly. It’s so much more.
Good Bones
Maggie Smith | 1 min
Evocative of a “tired yet slightly hopeful” feeling. Beautiful.
Life is short, though I keep this from my children.
Life is short, and I’ve shortened mine
in a thousand delicious, ill-advised ways,
…
// Music
Supposed to be the 21st night… but why wait to enjoy this song. ;)
Playful. Beautiful.
// Wholesome
That’s it for this edition.
Have a great week ahead!
With Love,
Bijay