Would you bet on yourself?

Deciding to quit smoking and wanting a cigarette can happen within the same half an hour. A decision that felt fairly fixed over at 1pm becomes surprisingly negotiable when you get a whiff of nicotine in a weak moment.

Researchers in the Philippines tested a way to give that earlier decision more weight. Smokers were offered an account where they could deposit their own money for six months. If they passed a test for nicotine exposure, they got it back. If they failed, the money went to charity.

Only 11% opened an account and put their money where their mouth (and the cigs) were.

For those who took it up, researchers estimated a 31–53 percentage-point increase in the likelihood of passing the twelve-month test.

What the study demonstrates is the power of a commitment device: a consequence you choose in advance to help yourself follow through.

The useful idea is acknowledging that your future self may want something different to your virtuous, well behaved current self. You can make arrangements now that support the decision you want to stick to later.

If you’re a leader - that might mean - committing to sharing engagement results - before you know the content. If you’re a team leader - it might mean telling your team that work life balance is a top priority — and then modelling this (no emails on weekends, no 9pm pings). How can you commit today, to make future you show up better?

Reference

Giné, X., Karlan, D., & Zinman, J. (2010). Put your money where your butt is: A commitment contract for smoking cessation. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 2(4), 213–235.