The brain is a lazy sock, says psychologist Hans-Georg Häusel. For decades, people could rely on their oil heating, but now it hurts a lot to say goodbye. How to succeed anyway – and how to make smart decisions.
Let’s start our search for the right heating system with a guess: think about how many decisions you consciously make in a day. Let’s say you get up in the morning, take a shower and (hopefully) brush your teeth (why?). You make yourself a coffee (why?) and turn on the radio (why?). It’s Saturday, you’re driving into town to do some shopping, in front of you a slow driver is jerking along the country road at 60 km/h, you’re getting impatient (why?) and overtaking (why?). Arrived in the pedestrian zone, you discover a pair of extremely chic shoes in the shop window. Even though they don’t need new shoes, they can’t resist and buy them (why?). In the evening you go with friends to your favorite Italian (why?). They crave pizza, but end up having what everyone else is ordering: tagliatelle alla bolognese (why?). Then go to the sports bar and watch the Champions League game (why?). When your favorite team scores the winning goal, jump up (why?) and dance for joy (why?).