Temptation Bundling
Pair a chore you avoid with a pleasure you crave, and you'll start craving the chore.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~weeks to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 95%
Temptation bundling links a task you avoid with a source of pleasure you only permit yourself during that task. Because present bias makes us throw in the towel on painful pursuits, making the path itself enjoyable causes us to persist and show up repeatedly. Milkman discovered it by only allowing herself indulgent entertainment while at the gym, which turned her into someone who craved workouts. The bundle transforms a dreaded, procrastinated activity into something instantly gratifying. Less progress per session can still yield a better outcome because you keep coming back.
Origin
Milkman built the strategy in her own life as a graduate student, only letting herself enjoy indulgent entertainment while exercising, then ran experiments proving it works for others and studied it academically.
Core principles
- 01Present bias makes us abandon goals that feel painful, so make the pursuit itself enjoyable.
- 02An enjoyable but less-efficient path beats an efficient but punishing one, because you persist longer.
- 03Restrict a specific temptation so it is only available while doing the thing you want to do more of.
How to run it
- 1
Name the chore you avoid
Pick a valuable behavior you consistently procrastinate on, such as the gym, household chores, or spending time with an important mentee.
Pro tip Choose something you genuinely believe is good for you but keep skipping.
- 2
Name a temptation you love
Identify an indulgent pleasure — a page-turner audiobook, a favorite podcast, a bottle of wine, a burger joint.
- 3
Restrict the temptation to the chore
Give yourself the pleasure only while performing the chore, so the two become linked in your mind.
Pro tip Milkman only opens a favorite bottle of wine when cooking a fresh family meal.
Watch out If you cheat and enjoy the temptation outside the bundle, the craving link weakens.
- 4
Repeat until the craving flips
With repetition you start craving the chore itself because it delivers the bundled reward.
In the wild
Milkman only let herself watch indulgent shows while exercising, which meant she started craving trips to the gym and wasted less time at home.
→ She showed up to the gym repeatedly and the effect was so strong she began researching it academically.
She limits visits to a favorite unhealthy restaurant to occasions when she must meet a difficult relative or an otherwise-unenticing but important work contact.
→ The unpleasant meeting becomes alluring because it is paired with the treat she has denied herself otherwise.
Common mistakes
Chasing pure efficiency
Choosing the most efficient but punishing path (the maximally brutal StairMaster) makes you quit; a fun but less-optimal path keeps you returning.
Letting the temptation leak
If you enjoy the bundled pleasure at other times, you lose the craving that pulls you toward the chore.
Is it for you?
Best for
People who know what they should do (exercise, chores) but can't make themselves start.
Not ideal for
Goals where the temptation would undermine the behavior itself (e.g. junk food during a diet).
From the transcript
“we do better when we look for a path that we'll enjoy more even if it's a little bit more circuitous”
“i only let myself enjoy indulgent entertainment while i was exercising at the gym and that meant i started craving trips to the gym”
From the episode
Katy Milkman: The Science of Change
Katy Milkman