WHAT’S NEW image
WHAT’S NEW image
WHAT’S NEW image
Heuristic Hacks

Improve your heuristic decision making

View All

Projective Satisficing

Humans believe that if something is good enough for a peer, then it is good enough for them too. Therefore, we often use others as a proxy to see if a product is a good idea for ourselves when we don’t have adequate knowledge or resources to arrive at the best decision. Projective Satisficing is a non-analytical heuristic used to make quick decisions that are likely to be good enough… but not perfect. When uncertainty is high, Projective Satisficing can work. In the absence of direct information or resources to make a concrete decision, Projective Satisficing allows us to decide for ourselves using other people’s satisfaction.

How to hack Projective Satisficing?

If it’s good enough for them, it’s good enough for me. People buy gadgets, choose localities for relocation, buy shoes, sign-up for professional services, etc., based on Projective Satisficing.

  • If you can’t relate to the peer, or your peers’ contexts, needs, and resources vastly differ, Projective Satisficing can lead to bad choices.
  • If you can relate to your peer or trust them enough, you may be satisfied with your decision.

In some cases, choosing what satisfies a peer (and not oneself) could also be the path of least resistance to making mutually agreeable decisions. Such decisions typically put a group’s overall satisfaction above your own by compromising on your needs while catering to theirs.

You can hack Projective Satisficing by:

  • Copying a friend who represents you in important ways.
  • Doing a pros and cons routine to see if others' satisfaction is more valuable than getting your needs fulfilled.

Hacking Projective Satisficing to avoid being a people pleaser

A downfall of Projective Satisficing is becoming a people pleaser, which may lower your satisfaction with how you spend time. If this is a dominant heuristic in your decision-making, you may believe your choices should satisfy others. However, if your choices don’t satisfy you and you continue using the heuristic, you may start disliking the time you spend and become frustrated with yourself (or others).

It may even lead to anxieties such as thinking others don’t treat you fairly, or that you never get your way. A healthy way to control Projective Satisficing is to manage how often you use it. You may once in a while go along with others’ decisions if they don’t bother you and balance it out with decisions that cater to your own needs when they don’t bother others. You may control Projective Satisficing while choosing restaurants, vacation spots, or movies, for example.

Do you think that you relate to this hacks? Learn how to bias this and more

Hacking Projective Satisficing to host a pleasant get-together and gel with new people

If you are inviting people over, there may be a good chance you want to keep them satisfied and show them a good time. You can ask your guests what they would like to eat or drink and choose something within your means that satisfies them but also appeals to you at some level. Similarly, if you are invited to a party with many new people, you may want to seek collective interests rather than your own.

Projective Satisficing is a useful decision-making heuristic to make fast decisions regarding the food or drinks you order or the places you choose to visit. If your yet-to-be friends are excited about something, you can rationalize it by thinking, “this might be a good idea for me too.” The cost of going along may be insignificant, and it may help you gel with others over a shared experience.

Hacking Projective Satisficing to make purchase decisions when you are exhausted

If you are exhausted browsing Amazon or a catalog of products in an area you hardly understand, you may feel overwhelmed. That, combined with mixed reviews, can be a frustrating ordeal. If this happens often and you end up making poor decisions (or no decision at all), you can use Projective Satisficing to arrive at a good-enough decision.

  • Describe your needs, use cases on the internet, and ask your friend’s opinion.
  • If you have a friend whose needs resemble yours, make the same choice they did.
  • Look for reviews that describe use cases and circumstances that resemble yours and choose the product mentioned in the review.

Hacking Projective Satisficing to make home decor decisions when you draw a blank

With creative pursuits like designing a home, you will likely face indecision and confusion unless your vision is clear. If your home is an unfurnished house, you may not know where to begin. Confusion is a prime opportunity to use Projective Satisficing to get started on the home decor.

You can think about the people you know who have a similar lifestyle and use their decisions as a reference to make your decision. This approach is particularly useful with respect to space, spending capacity, luxury, choice of thrift purchases, space utilization, colors, etc.

Hack Projective Satisficing NOW!

Learn about more heuristics and hacks: