Do you realize that in today’s world, we have become accustomed to instant gratification without even realizing it? We expect everything to be at our fingertips, from online shopping and fast food delivery to social media likes and quick search engine results.
However, our desire for instant gratification has far-reaching consequences that we often overlook. We have become more impatient, easily irritated when things do not happen quickly, and this has resulted in a decline in our ability to delay gratification. As a result, our chances of success, both personally and professionally, can suffer.
In this article, we will look into what instant gratification is and how it influences our behavior and our ability to achieve our goals.
Table of Contents
What Is Instant Gratification?
The desire for immediate pleasure or reward without delay or effort is referred to as instant gratification. It is the proclivity to seek immediate fulfillment of our desires and needs without regard for the long-term consequences.
The idea is often linked to Sigmund Freud’s “Pleasure Principle,”[1] which holds that people are motivated by their desire to feel pleasure.
In children, we often see examples of instant gratification. Take, for example, my son. He is very enthusiastic about chess. He is a member of the chess club and regularly practices with his coach and studies chess strategies. He became frustrated during one of their practice games because he kept losing to his coach. He became impatient and wanted to stop practicing and leave.
If he succumbed to the temptation of instant gratification and chose to leave rather than continue practicing, he may have missed out on valuable practice time that could have helped him improve his chess skills.
To resist this temptation, I advised him to take a break and return to practice when he felt more focused and motivated. His coach also attempted to divide their practice into smaller challenges in order for him to better understand the strategies.
Even adults, like us, are frequently tempted by instant gratification. Let’s see if you can relate to some of these examples:
- We’ve all experienced the thrill of receiving likes, comments, and shares on our social media posts. These small rewards provide immediate gratification and validation.
- Fast food and junk food are designed to be addictive and provide us with a quick rush of pleasure. We are aware that these foods are unhealthy, but we continue to consume them due to the immediate gratification they provide.
- When something is important and requires effort and focus, we put it off in favor of enjoyable activities that give us immediate gratification, like scrolling through social media or watching TV.
If you can relate to any of these examples, instant gratification has most likely become an unnoticed part of your life.
Why Are We Drawn to Instant Gratification?
Our desire for immediate gratification is rooted in human nature, aggravated by modern technology, and fueled by uncertainty. Being aware of these factors can make it easier to resist the temptation of instant gratification:
Human Nature Is Hardwired for Immediate Gratification
One reason we are tempted by instant gratification is rooted in human nature. The human brain is wired to seek pleasure and avoid pain, according to the “Pleasure Principle.” This is a fundamental survival mechanism that has been ingrained in us since infancy.[2]
When we satisfy our desires and needs, our brain produces dopamine, a neurotransmitter that produces a sense of pleasure and reward. When we do not receive fulfillment, we experience anxiety or tension. Self-denial is unpleasant, and our natural instinct is to seize any opportunity for pleasure that presents itself.
Modern Technology’s Prevalence
With the advancement of technology, everything, from social media to instant messaging,[3] and even the food we eat must be quick and instant. We are finding it more difficult to resist our impulses as instant gratification becomes more readily available.
Moreover, the prevalence of social media in our lives has fostered the habit of instant gratification.[4] Likes, comments, and shares on social media platforms provide us with instant gratification. The instant gratification provided by social media feeds our desire for immediate pleasure and reward.
Living in an Uncertain Era
Another reason we are tempted by instant gratification is uncertainty. People tend to think in the short term during times of uncertainty, such as the COVID-19 pandemic or times of war. We tend to get the immediate reward and pleasure because we don’t know when or if a future reward will be received.
The stress that comes with uncertainty also causes us to gravitate toward choices that will instantly improve our mood, such as eating comfort food, binge-watching TV shows, or other forms of instant gratification.
Why Is Instant Gratification Bad for You?
While instant gratification can bring us immediate pleasure, it most often comes at the expense of long-term success. When we prioritize short-term gratification over long-term goals, we may overlook important tasks or make poor decisions that have negative consequences.
Getting Stuck in a Procrastination Cycle
When we prioritize instant gratification over delayed gratification, we may find ourselves procrastinating on tasks that require effort, focus, and patience. For instance, we might decide to binge-watch a TV show or spend hours on social media instead of working on a long-term project.
This procrastination cycle can have a negative impact on both our personal and professional lives, resulting in missed opportunities, decreased productivity, and increased stress and anxiety as deadlines approach.
Furthermore, the more we seek instant gratification, the more we reinforce the procrastination habit, making it more difficult to break the cycle. This can create a negative cycle in which we feel guilty and anxious about procrastinating, which drives us to seek more instant gratification in order to cope with those negative feelings.
Failure to Achieve Your Goals
When we seek immediate gratification, we train our brains to expect immediate pleasure and reward. This can result in a lack of motivation to pursue long-term goals or participate in activities that require effort or delayed gratification. Instead of putting in the effort necessary to achieve our goals, we become more focused on gratifying our immediate needs and desires.[5]
Our self-control deteriorates as we give in to instant gratification. According to research, indulging in instant gratification reduces our willpower and makes it more difficult to resist future temptations.[6] This can lead to a vicious cycle in which we become more reliant on instant gratification and less capable of exercising self-control.
The Marshmallow Experiment is a classic study that demonstrates just this.[7]
In the Marshmallow Experiment, children were given the option of either one marshmallow right away or two marshmallows if they could wait a certain amount of time. The study discovered that children who were able to delay gratification and wait for the second marshmallow had higher SAT scores, better social skills, and healthier lifestyles later in life.
This study shows that one key predictor of long-term success is the capacity to suppress the urge for instant gratification and exercise self-control. Those who can resist the temptation of instant gratification and concentrate on long-term goals are more likely to succeed in various aspects of their lives.
Becoming More Impatient
Instant gratification can influence our behavior negatively, including making us more impatient. When we become accustomed to getting what we want right away, we may begin to expect it in all aspects of our lives.
For example, if we are accustomed to receiving fast food, instant messaging, and instant access to entertainment, we may become less tolerant of waiting for things such as personal and professional growth, long-term relationships, and achieving big goals.
“We’re becoming impatient and lazy and we’re allowing this to shape our approach to our relationships. But successful relationships aren’t handed over on a plate, or downloaded at the click of a button, or ours in twenty-four hours for just £9.99 extra. Relationships are up there with food, water, clothing and shelter and you can’t just buy them or trade them in for an upgrade.” – Sam Owen, author of Resilient Me: How to Worry Less and Achieve More
When we expect instant gratification in all aspects of our lives, including our relationships, we may become less tolerant of things like disagreements, conflicts, and other challenges that come with any long-term relationship.
This impatience can result in feelings of frustration and dissatisfaction, which can lead to arguments and even breakups. It can also have an impact on our ability to communicate effectively, compromise, and work through problems with our partners because we may be unwilling to put in the time and effort required for long-term relationships to succeed.
This impatience can also have an impact on our decision-making abilities. We may begin to make rash decisions without fully considering the long-term implications. This can result in poor decisions and missed opportunities.
How to Delay Gratification For Good
Delaying gratification is a skill that can be learned and honed over time.[8]
You can practice delaying gratification by following these quick tips:
- Identify your goals – You’ll struggle to delay gratification if you don’t have a reason to do so. Consider which long-term objectives you want to achieve and what you can do to get there. And imagine a bright future.
- Eliminate temptations by using technology to block apps and set limits for yourself so that you are not tempted by instant gratification.
- Break down challenges into manageable tasks – Breaking down difficult tasks into smaller ones allows you to tackle them more easily and with a greater sense of control.
- Reward yourself for sticking with it – Celebrating small wins for each milestone you’ve reached will help you stay motivated.
- Practice mindfulness – Mindfulness practice increases self-awareness, allowing you to become more aware of your thoughts, emotions, and impulses and make deliberate decisions about how to respond to them.
Read How to Use Delayed Gratification to Your Advantage for more information on how to delay gratification.
Conclusion
While instant gratification may provide immediate pleasure and satisfaction, it can actually hinder our long-term success and well-being. We may miss out on important opportunities and the chance to achieve our goals if we focus on short-term pleasures. The good news is that delaying gratification is a skill that can be learned and improved over time.
Keep in mind that attaining success calls for endurance, patience, and a readiness to postpone immediate gratification in favor of greater rewards down the road. We can improve our chances of success and living a fulfilling life by learning to resist instant gratification and focus on long-term goals.
Featured photo credit: Daria Nepriakhina via unsplash.com
Reference
| [1] | ^ | APA Dictionary of Psychology: Pleasure Principle |
| [2] | ^ | Scientific Reports: Infant expectations of instant or delayed gratification |
| [3] | ^ | The University of Alabama: I WANT IT NOW: DO NEW MEDIA AFFECT ABILITY TO DELAY GRATIFICATION? |
| [4] | ^ | Elliot Panek, University of Alabama: Immediate Media: How Instant Gratification, Self-Control, and the Expansion of Media Choice Affect our Everyday Lives. |
| [5] | ^ | nesslabs: Present bias: how instant gratification impacts your long-term goals |
| [6] | ^ | American Psychological Association: What you need to know about willpower: The psychological science of self-control |
| [7] | ^ | J Pers Soc Psychol.: Cognitive and attentional mechanisms in delay of gratification |
| [8] | ^ | Science Advances: The neural basis of delayed gratification |
