Mini Episode 22 - Why did my pay rise buzz wear off so quickly?

Jenny from Sandringham wants to why her pay rise has left her feeling flat.

Dan: (00”17)
Welcome to The Bad Decisions Podcast. We are tackling life's big and beautiful questions. I'm your host, Dan Monheit, co-founder of Creative Agency Hardhat, and today we have a cracker of a question. This one comes to us courtesy of Jenny from the Block, also known as sandham.

Jenny: (00:34)
A few months ago, I was so excited to hear I was getting a raise, but now I'm already thinking about when I will get the next one. Why did my pay rise buzz wear off so quickly?

Dan: (00:45)
Ah, Jenny, Jenny, Jenny. Look, we have, we have all been there, right? We know what it's like four months. You have pined over what that little bit of extra dosh will do for your happiness. You've imagined that lax restaurant you'll be able to dine at how that magnificent new watch will look on your wrist and how much sweeter that red wine will taste when you're not paying it off in four equal installments. Yet here you are, right post payday 8% richer, but certainly not feeling 8% happier,

Dan: (01:24)
So first thoughts. I mean, I go to the great philosopher, notorious BIG, and he had a lot to say on this know mo money, mo problems and all of that stuff, but maybe there's more to it. I mean, maybe you just don't have the pallet for that fancy Shiraz that you thought you did, or maybe that's sour taste that the back of your mouth is actually just a behavioral bias trying to get your attention . Well, what do you know? There it is behind door number three. It is a behavioral bias and it is something called the focusing illusion. Now, the focusing illusion, this is a super powerful bias. It refers to our tendency to concentrate on a single aspect of our lives or a particular decision to the exclusion of all others. Danny Kahneman, who I'm sure you know by now, the Nobel laureate and unofficial godfather of all things behavioral economics, explains it simply as follows.

Dan: (02:11)
Nothing in life is as important as you think it is while you are thinking about it. I think that's what's repeating, right? Nothing in life is as important as you think it is while you are thinking about it. In other words, whatever you happen to be focusing on has a funny way of becoming the most important thing to consider. So let's cut to the research. In 1978, Brickman Coats and Janov Borman compared the happiness of lottery winners with the happiness of paraplegics and quadriplegics caused by accidents. Both groups were asked to write how happy they are now, how happy they were before winning the lottery or before the accident, and how happy they expected to be in a couple of years from now. Now, it's fair to assume that those who won the lottery would end up far happier than those who'd suffered debilitating injuries, but my friend, you'd assume wrong, millions, richer or physically poorer.

Dan: (03:01)
The researchers found that both groups had a similar outlook on current and future happiness. While focusing on money or one's physical condition makes them feel critically important in the moment, the impact from a major change in either actually dissipates over time as we adapt to our new reality. See, it's worth remembering that paraplegics aren't paraplegics full time. Sometimes they're just people enjoying a meal or reading the newspaper or basking in the sunshine or catching up with friends, and it's exactly the same for millionaires too commercially. We see the focusing illusion at play everywhere. It explains to how the constant talk about airfare prices has got us all feeling travel obsessed. Why a yogurt that suddenly claims to be high in protein magically finds its way into our shopping trolleys and why singles can long to be coupled and vice versa. It is so tempting and so very, very human to believe that there's just one little thing between us and total happiness when in reality it's what we choose to focus on that makes all the difference.

Dan: (04:00)
Whoa, Jenny, sorry to just go all Dr. Phil, Life coach on you, let's bring this back to the Benjamins. Of course, it was a great day when you received that pay rise and from the way you asked questions, Jenny, I bet you really deserved it, but let's be real. We know our attention spans are short and once get that damn pay rise got crossed off your list, it was onto the next thing, wasn't it? And there's no doubt that whatever that next thing is will absolutely, positively, definitely make you happy from here until the end of time. So you go get it, girl. For brands, the focusing illusion provides an opportunity to align what we're selling with what's top of mind for consumers in any product, there are hundreds, if not thousands of details. A customer could focus on identifying what's most important or better yet helping customers decide.

Dan: (04:45)
What's most important will put you in the box seat when it comes time to buy. So there you have it, Jenny. I hope that helps you understand why that pay rise buzz wore off so quickly. But just remember, even if the buzz has gone down, the actual bank balance has gone up. So you should still be very happy and very proud of yourself. Go buy yourself, something nice. If you are listening to this thinking about a weird or wonderful question about human behavior, please shoot it through to me and I would love to try and give you an answer. The best way to find me is all over the internet at Dan Monheit or on all the email you can get me askdan@hardhat.com.au catch you next time.