2024 Q1 | Edition 5 | Article 1
Can we solve for a better life?
Sometimes, we want to discover something that is unknown to us. We have the pieces of the puzzle in front of us, and we’re a few steps away from calculating the answers that we need. In mathematics, we call this solving for something. Can we solve for ‘x’, where x is the value that we don’t know. What if we could apply the structure of mathematical approaches to solve for things that really matter, like a better life?
The basic principles
You all remember the questions on the test paper. Solve for X where … It means to find the value of an unknown variable in an equation, given all the other information available to you. There are different ways of approaching ‘solve for’ problems.
We all know that there are some ways of living life that are more desirable than others. This is not about buying the optimum car that will make you happy or the perfect clothing that will make everyone admire you. Those are illusions that have been sold to you. But there are some universal truths. Better health, provided you appreciate and know how to enjoy it, makes many things in life more easily accessible. Better relationships have the power to transform the quality or our lives. Being able to achieve a goal that you have set yourself leads to greater confidence, and a sense that you can take control over your future. But so many of us struggle with the people we spend the most time with, and with being true to our body’s needs. Can taking a mathematical approach help?
Steps to solve for a better life
The first challenge is to correctly determine what puzzle you are trying to solve. If you want to lose weight, the challenge is probably not educating yourself on what foods you should be eating - nobody ever put on excess weight eating a diet rich in natural fruit, vegetables, grains and proteins. The challenge is more likely to be motivating yourself to prioritise your health over other things that demand your attention and time. If you want to build better relationships, the best place to start is probably not to blame the people around you, but to take a long hard look at the actions you are responsible for that sully the tone around other people.
Once you have understood the challenge, mathematics brings three powerful methods to bear on problems …
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If you have a clear idea of what creates the undesirable state, you can try and reverse the process. You may need to break this down into steps and identify which operations need to happen first. If you know you eat a lot of highly processed foods, like orange juice, what is the inverse? An actual orange and a glass of water will be much healthier. You’ll need to add oranges to your food order, and perhaps make a little time to peel and eat the orange. Chugging a glass of juice is quicker but less healthy.
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For centuries, nobody has tried to work out the length of the hypotenuse on a triangle by any method other than using Pythagorean Theorem. He did the hard work so we don’t have to. All we need to do is apply his theorem. If you are after easy life hacks, there is a wealth of evidence collated in the last few years on the most effective yet minimal life interventions. For example 10 minutes of breathing exercises and a cold shower every day may just be the best thing you could do straight away.
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Keeping a balance can be a good way of setting limits. The amount of time, effort and resources you use should be equal to the amount you have available. This may sound pretty obvious, but by defining the relationship that two things should have, you can set limits and avoid bad choices. The most obvious is setting a limit on your spending. If you want to spend more than your budget, you shouldn’t go into debt, but find a way to multiple your income or add to it through a successful side hustle, evening job or chasing promotion. If you genuinely prioritise relationships, then you need to listen to what the other person is telling you. Even being ignored is saying something about that relationship.
Remember to get the parentheses in place
Remember parentheses from your algebra classes? They exist to remind you to clearly identify the order of operations to be performed. The same is true of well being. Experts concur that sleep, a healthy diet and exercise are foundational. Try and achieve objectives without those building blocks in place and you are setting yourself up for failure.
If you want to have better relationships, then we know that all of us carry a large number of misconceptions about the world formed when we were very little and our interpretative powers were generally very unreliable. As we grow older, we carry these with us. Perhaps we think we’re undeserving and sabotage our relationships through constantly testing others? Perhaps we haven’t learnt the modesty that comes with accepting our own inevitable challenges. Working on yourself before trying to change your relationship with others is an event that belongs firmly in parentheses.
Putting it into practice this January
Take a minute to write down all of the goals that you want to set yourself this year. Write down a plan to achieve them.
Now, suppose it’s now June and all your plans have failed. Write down why they have failed.
Ask your brain to come up with a different plan to achieve your goals, a plan that you can really act on.
Then wait. Keep asking your brain to help you with a new way to solve your problem and test it out. If it doesn’t work, ask your brain to come up with another idea that you can act on. As long as you keep asking and acting, eventually your brain will solve the problem.
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