{"id":295,"date":"2007-05-18T04:49:28","date_gmt":"2007-05-18T11:49:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2007\/05\/18\/if-at-first-you-dont-succeed-cheat\/"},"modified":"2018-04-04T03:27:55","modified_gmt":"2018-04-04T10:27:55","slug":"if-at-first-you-dont-succeed-cheat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.scotthyoung.com\/blog\/2007\/05\/18\/if-at-first-you-dont-succeed-cheat\/","title":{"rendered":"If at First You Don’t Succeed – Cheat"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Test<\/p>\n

How much are you willing to cheat? The answer is probably not enough. When I\u2019m talking about cheating here I don\u2019t mean the kind of legal or ethical violations that could wind you up in jail or sitting on a lifetime of guilt. No, the kind of cheating I\u2019m talking about is breaking the assumptions for how things are supposed to be done.<\/p>\n

Everyone has unwritten rules for how life is supposed to work. Unfortunately it often takes a brazen cheater to break those rules and show how they didn\u2019t apply at all. You don\u2019t realize what rules you are abiding until you see someone who sleeps three hours a day<\/a>, works four hours per week<\/a> or transforms from a chump to pick-up artist<\/a>\"\"<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Cheating is More Than Creativity<\/h2>\n

Some of you may think I\u2019m really stretching the word \u201ccheating\u201d here to encompass everything from creativity to luck. But here\u2019s the thing, before you break an assumption and do something differently it can often feel like you are cheating the system. Even as you go forward and break old rules part of you feels dishonest, as if you are annoyed that the world doesn\u2019t follow the assumptions you have.<\/p>\n

I have had a minor case of cheating assumptions when it came to study for exams. Because aside for some quick review I didn\u2019t do it<\/a>. Even in University I\u2019ve aced exams where the total review time before writing was less than a half hour. It may sound creative or smart, but until recently it always felt like cheating.<\/p>\n

I shouldn\u2019t be able to do well in exams without studying at all. In highschool I would occasionally study a little bit just to feel a bit less like a cheater. When you break your own assumptions about how the world is supposed to work, it feels wrong.<\/p>\n

Creativity implies coming up with a solution you are comfortable with, perhaps even proud of. I feel creative when I come up with a new article idea, do some painting or just finish some brainstorming. But cheating never feels comfortable. Even when you are implementing your cheat, you often just sit there waiting for the universe to prove you wrong.<\/p>\n

Cheating What You Can\u2019t Explain<\/h2>\n

The reason cheating feels wrong or at least disconcerting is that you can\u2019t really explain it. When you break down an assumption about the world, you are left with a vacuum of understanding. I\u2019m sure many people after seeing Steve Pavlina\u2019s polyphasic sleep trial<\/a> shattered their notions about how sleep had to work.<\/p>\n

I think many people avoid cheating precisely because of this vacuum. If your assumptions were broken, you would lose a lot of certainty. A lack of certainty terrifies most people, so they don\u2019t bother to test the assumptions at all. It isn\u2019t a fear of failure that keeps people from challenging assumptions. It is a fear that it might actually work.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Be Aware of Your Assumptions<\/h2>\n

You can\u2019t leave a room if you don\u2019t know where the door is located. Similarly you can\u2019t cheat your assumptions if you don\u2019t know how they surround you. Being aware of your assumptions about reality is critical if you plan on breaking any of them.<\/p>\n

Whenever I examine a problem, I ask myself what my assumptions are. I\u2019ll ask myself, \u201cIn order for this to be true, what would I need to believe.\u201d As an example, if I\u2019m going to the gym every day for three hours to get in shape, I might ask myself: \u201cWhat would I need to believe in order to use this as a solution.\u201d<\/p>\n

This gives me a list of assumptions:<\/p>\n