It amazes me how wisdom from old times keeps its value over time. One example is “Temptation Bundling” that Professor Katherine Milkman of Wharton University introduced in 2014.
Temptation bundling is a productivity technique that involves combining an activity that gratifies you, such as watching TV, with one that is beneficial but has a delayed reward, such as exercising. It is mixing what you desire with what you avoid doing.
The Old Story
The readers might be hesitant to read about the concept of temptation bundling. Stories are attractive to people. They have the power to explain the undesired concepts in desirable stories. Great stories are great examples of temptation bundling.
The old story from Arab history explains this concept very well. A Bedouin was sad because of his ailing camel. He made a promise to sell the camel for just one pound if it recovered. The camel recovered and the Bedouin felt unhappy to sell the camel but wished to fulfill his promise. He consulted one of his friends who came up with a bundling idea. He advised the owner to go to the market and say, “The camel is only for one pound, the cat is for one hundred pounds, and interested people should buy the two as a bundle”.
A man said how cheap the price of the camel was but for the price of the cat. Everyone wanted to buy a camel for a pound. Nobody was willing to buy the cat and the bundle was too expensive to buy.
Temptation Bundle in My Life
When we were children, my brothers and I loved going to the movies. It was the only entertainment for us. My father realized this and made use of it.
During the long summer vacation he bought selected English stories for us to read, (we did not like reading much at those times). My father did not force us to read. Instead, he promised us to each get a movie ticket on one condition. That was to summarize the story in an acceptable two pages.
He combined our love for movies with much less love to read. That resulted in all of us becoming fond of reading. Reading became a daily habit.
Creativity Power
I find temptation bundling a great source for creative ideas in every aspect of our lives and businesses. This bundling has a simple concept to dilute what you do not want with something you want wholeheartedly.
You are a manager- find ways to mix what your employees do not like with what they like. In marketing, selling, or whatever activity creativity in offering a temptation bundling is possible.
My granddaughter wants to play and avoids eating. Her mother gets upset about this. I bought a training balloon and gave it to my daughter. I told her to allow Sophia to play with it only if she eats. This worked wonders.
I hope that you dear readers share your thoughts and experiences.
As I wrote yesterday, this is so beautifully imagined. One can actually see the work of the generations.
Braiding together research from the Wharton School + a traditional story + a childhood learning + a father/grandfather application – and all in a few choice paragraphs.
This is a written example of how the oral tradition worked. We would learn from our elders, apply it in our young lives, carry it over to the next generation.
I am always possessed by a spirit of gratitude, Ali, to read your rich essays.
It might not sound as robust as the comments that I wrote yesterday but I hope you get the themes of love / parenting / learning / stories / sharing / universal truths ~ Diane
I greatly appreciate your comment and its fullness and wisdom, Diane.
Yes, transfer of knowledge and wisdom from generation to generation.
Your comment is robust and it reached me with its appreciation and gratitude. I am deeply thankful to you