How to apply the 20 Slot Rule to your life

“People of the future may not suffer from an absence of choice, but from a paralyzing surfeit of it. They may turn out to be victims of that peculiarly super-industrial dilemna: overchoice.” — Alvin Toffler (1976)

When Warren Buffet lectures at business schools, he shares the idea that if a person had a ticket with only 20 slots, representing all the investments they could make in their lifetime, they’d have to think quite carefully about what they did and so their portfolio would do much better. Once the 20 slots are punched, they couldn’t make any more investments.

He expounds on the idea that not taking time to think about a decision can lead to making a bunch of decisions that cause us discomfort or loss later on.

Buffet’s idea of the ‘20 Slot Rule’ doesn’t have to just apply to investments.

What if we were to apply that concept to our daily lives? In a world that’s constantly encouraging us to consume, consume, consume it can be difficult to say no to new purchases or opportunities.

Think about it.

How much more simple would your life be if your (main) wardrobe consisted of 20 staples?

How much more meaningful would your relationship be if you only had 20 people with who you really invested?

How would your diet change if you limited using recipes that used the same 20 ingredients?

What if you were only able to pursue 20 ‘passions’?

There’s the option to take it as far as you want. Maybe not a 20-piece wardrobe, but only having 20 pairs of bottoms, 20 pairs of tops, and 20 pairs of shoes. How would limiting our choices affect the quality of our lives?

There’s no doubt we live in a world of instant gratification. If something doesn’t work the way we want when we want, we move on to something else. There’s not a lot of dedication or persistence through resistance.

We’re stuck in this cycle of trying to do too many things at once versus sticking to the main thing that brings us the most happiness/ satisfaction/ progress.

Consider applying to the ’20 Slot Rule’ to one area of your life and notice how much easier it becomes to make decisions.

xx Lauren

P.S. I’m a new writer on Medium and appreciate all the support I receive! Any claps, comments, and follows mean so much to me. Thank you for reading!