How our Brain’s Shortcuts shapes our WORLD; as it takes the path of least resistance.

Have you ever wondered why some apps are so easy to use, or why you always end up buying that one brand of dal at the supermarket? It’s not just chance. It’s often by design, influenced by deep insights into how our minds actually work. And much of this understanding can be traced back to a brilliant man named Herbert Simon.

1. The “Good Enough” Brain: Bounded Rationality

Imagine you’re at a bustling sabzi mandi (vegetable market) in your city and need to buy tomatoes. Do you meticulously check every single vendor’s tomatoes for freshness, price, and ripeness, comparing each one to find the absolute perfect lot? Probably not. You likely glance at a few, pick the ones that look fresh enough at a reasonable price, and move on.

The example cited above is the essence of Herbert Simon’s Bounded Rationality. He taught us that unlike super-computers, our human brains have limits – on time, information, and processing power. We can’t analyse every single option to find the “perfect” solution because it’s simply too exhausting and time-consuming. We’re “bounded” by these very cognitive limits.

So, instead of being perfectly rational optimizers, we’re more like practical problem-solvers who take mental shortcuts.

2. Settling for “Satisficing”: The “Chalta Hai” Mindset

Because our brains are bounded, we don’t always strive for the best option; we aim for a just “good enough” one. Simon called this Satisficing – a blend of “satisfy” and “suffice.”

We pick the first option that meets our minimum requirements and move on for that very moment in space and time. Think of it as the “chalta hai” (it’ll do) mindset in a positive, efficient way!

It’s our brain’s clever way of conserving energy.

Example : When choosing a new washing machine, you might set a budget, a brand preference, and basic features. The first model you find that ticks these boxes – a decent brand, within budget, with automatic wash – often becomes your choice, even if there might be a marginally better model if you searched for another two hours. You “satisfice” because the effort of finding the absolute best outweighs the marginal gain.

3. Shaping Your Choices: The Choice Architecture

If people naturally lean towards “good enough” and take shortcuts, designers can “architect” the environment to make certain choices easier or more prominent. This is Choice Architecture. It’s about how options are presented to subtly “nudge” us towards a particular decision.

Examples:

• Online Food Delivery Apps: Ever noticed how one restaurant or dish is often highlighted as “Recommended,” “Popular,” or “Top Rated”? These are subtle nudges. Knowing you’re bounded by choices and satisficing, you’re more likely to pick one of these highlighted options than to scroll endlessly.
• Welfare Schemes: When applying for a welfare service online, the “recommended” or “most used” option is often presented first, guiding citizens towards the intended path.

4. Designing for Behaviour: Behavioural Design

This field takes insights from psychology and applies them to design products, services, and policies to influence behaviour. Understanding Simon’s theory means we design for the real human, not the perfectly rational one.

Examples:

Swachh Bharat Abhiyan: Beyond just building toilets, the campaign used behavioural design by promoting social norms, visible usage, and community pride (e.g., “Mera Gaon Swachh Gaon”). The goal was to make open defecation socially undesirable, nudging people towards using toilets.

UPI Apps : The simple, immediate “scan and pay” option, often accompanied by a celebratory sound or animation, is behavioural design in action.

The new age mobile phone applications are made to purposefully reduces the cognitive load of a transaction to almost zero, making digital payments “good enough” and incredibly convenient.

5. The Power of “Smart Defaults”

If you don’t choose, someone else often chooses for you.

Smart Defaults are pre-selected options that become your choice if you do nothing. They leverage our tendency to stick with the path of least resistance (satisficing).

Examples:

• PF/EPF Contributions: Many employers in India automatically enroll employees into EPF, and a default contribution rate is set. While you can change it, many employees don’t, leading to consistent savings. This is a powerful default as it helps to build a corpus for our retirement.
• App Permissions: When you install a new app, it often asks for permissions (e.g., “Allow access to contacts”). Often, the default is “Allow,” and users quickly click through without taking a second glance.
• Insurance Opt-in: At times in online purchases (like flight bookings), travel insurance might be pre-checked by default. If you’re in a hurry (bounded by time), you might simply proceed without unchecking it.

6. Simpler UIs: Less is More

If users have limited attention and prefer to satisfice, then a clean, intuitive, and uncluttered interface (Simpler UI) is paramount. It reduces “cognitive load” – the mental effort required to understand and use something.

Examples:

• Aadhaar-enabled Services: The design of many welfare digital platforms for Aadhaar services aims for simplicity, focusing on one task at a time (e.g., download e-Aadhaar, update details) to make complex processes less daunting for a diverse user base, including those with limited digital literacy.
• OTT Platforms : They present content in easily scrollable categories with clear thumbnails, reducing the mental effort to find something to watch. The less thinking, the quicker you can “satisfice” and start viewing.

From Bias to Clarity: Lessons from the Bhagavad Gita

While Simon’s theory explains how we make decisions, the ancient wisdom of the Bhagavad Gita offers profound insights into how to make better ones by addressing the very biases and attachments that cloud our rationality. Bhagvan Shri Krishna counsels to Arjuna on the battlefield of Kurukshetra; this counsel is a masterclass in overcoming cognitive pitfalls.

Arjuna’s initial dilemma stems from moha (attachment) to his family and kinsmen. This attachment biases his judgment, preventing him from seeing his Dharma (duty). Simon’s “bounded rationality” shows us we’re limited; Gita shows us how our emotions further limit and distort our judgment.

Bhagavad Gita 2.47:

“कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन।

मा कर्मफलहेतुर्भूर्मा ते सङ्गोऽस्त्वकर्मणि॥”

“You have a right to perform your prescribed duties, but you are not entitled to the fruits of your actions. Never consider yourself to be the cause of the results of your activities, nor be attached to inaction.”

This sloka directly addresses the bias of outcome bias and loss aversion. We often make decisions driven by the expected outcome or the fear of loss. Bhagvan Shri Krishna advises focusing on the action itself (Karma) without being excessively attached to the result. This detachment helps resolve the bias, enabling clearer decision-making.

Bhagvan Shri Krishna repeatedly emphasizes developing a Sthita-Prajna – a steady, unwavering intellect. This is crucial for unbiased action, directly contrasting the “bounded” and often swayed rationality Simon describes.

“One whose mind is undisturbed amidst sorrows, who is free from longing for pleasures, and who is liberated from attachment, fear, and anger, is called a sage of steady intellect.”

Here, Bhagvan Shri Krishna guides us to remove the emotional biases (like fear and anger) that warp our judgment, allowing us to see situations more objectively and thus, make more rational, less “bounded” choices. A calm mind, free from these vikaras (disturbances), can process information more effectively and truly evaluate options beyond mere satisficing.

Nishkama Karma

Action Without Desire for Fruits

The concept of Nishkama Karma is a powerful antidote to many cognitive biases. When we act without selfish motives or attachment to the specific outcome, our decision-making becomes purer and less prone to biases like self-serving bias or confirmation bias. We are not trying to confirm our preconceived notions or ensure a personal gain, but rather to perform our duty justly.

Bhagavad Gita 3.19:

“तस्मादसक्तः सततं कार्यं कर्म समाचर।

असक्तो ह्याचरन्कर्म परमाप्नोति पूरुषः॥”

“Therefore, without attachment, constantly perform your duty, for by performing duty without attachment, one attains the Supreme.”

By shedding the burden of outcomes, our cognitive load is reduced. We are freer to evaluate the present circumstances, make decisions based on what is right (Dharma), and trust the process, rather than being swayed by the anxiety of results. This allows for a deeper, more profound form of “rationality” that transcends mere logical calculation.

The Blend: Ancient Wisdom, Modern Design

Herbert Simon showed us the reality of our cognitive limitations. The Bhagavad Gita provides the philosophical framework to transcend these limitations through self-awareness, detachment, and adherence to Dharma. Modern designers, by understanding Simon’s principles, can create user experiences that are intuitive and efficient, leading us to “satisfice” effectively. And for us as individuals, the Gita reminds us that while external design influences our choices, true mastery lies in cultivating an internal environment of clarity and equanimity, allowing us to make decisions not just “good enough,” but truly enlightened.