Recently, I wrote a piece asking why taking action is hard. Why do we so often struggle to take our ideas and actually do something about them? It’s tempting to just say people are lazy or unmotivated, but I think the question is a lot more complex and interesting than it first appears.

最近，我寫了一篇關(guān)于采取行動(dòng)為什么困難的文章。為什么我們總是很難把想法付諸行動(dòng)？很容易把這僅僅歸因于人們懶惰或缺少動(dòng)力，但我認(rèn)為這個(gè)問題比乍看上去復(fù)雜得多，也有趣得多。

Related to this question is what makes something effortful? Why is it “easier” to watch Netflix than solve math problems?

與此相關(guān)的一個(gè)問題是，什么使得有些事情需要付出努力？為什么看網(wǎng)飛的電視劇比解決數(shù)學(xué)問題更“容易”？

Like taking action, this question risks being overlooked because of our familiarity with it. It’s “obvious” to us that television is easier than algebra, so we don’t bother to ask why. However, like action, I think effort is also more mysterious than it first appears.

與采取行動(dòng)一樣，這個(gè)問題也有被忽視的風(fēng)險(xiǎn)，因?yàn)槲覀儗?duì)它太熟悉了。對(duì)我們而言，看電視比學(xué)習(xí)代數(shù)更容易是“顯而易見的”，因此不會(huì)多此一舉地詢問原因。然而，與行動(dòng)一樣，我認(rèn)為努力也比它乍看上去更神秘。

Effort as Energy Expenditure

努力作為能量消耗

A simple view of effort is that it simply represents an investment of a fixed resource, possibly calories or glucose.

對(duì)努力的一個(gè)簡單看法是，它僅僅表示投入一種固定資源，可能是卡路里或葡萄糖。

Running is more effortful than sitting for this reason. If you run constantly, you use up more calories than sitting, and thus need to eat more to stay alive. Since calories were historically scarce, it might be that we have an aversion to effort because it keeps us from wasting energy.

跑步比靜坐需要更多努力，原因即在于此。如果你一直跑步，則比靜坐消耗更多卡路里，因此需要吃更多食物來維持生命。由于卡路里長期以來都是稀缺的，有可能我們厭惡努力是因?yàn)檫@樣可以避免我們浪費(fèi)能量。

Running also strains muscles and joints (if done excessively) so there’s another possible reason for making it harder. If you run non-stop, eventually your muscles will wear out, so preventing strain and damage to your body may also be involved in the effort in some activities.

跑步（如果過量）也會(huì)造成肌肉和關(guān)節(jié)緊張，因此這是造成跑步困難另一個(gè)可能的原因。如果你不停歇地跑步，最終肌肉會(huì)精疲力竭，因此有些活動(dòng)需要付出努力，可能也與防止肌肉勞損和損害身體有關(guān)。

This simple idea makes sense, but it breaks down when you consider it carefully. For starters, many activities that have similar caloric consumption or wear-and-tear on the body have wildly different amounts of effort required. Watching lectures in physics isn’t going to consume more calories than YouTube.

這個(gè)簡單的解釋能說得通，但如果你仔細(xì)思考，它就不攻自破了。對(duì)于初學(xué)者而言，許多活動(dòng)對(duì)卡路里的消耗和對(duì)身體的磨損是類似的，但是需要的努力程度卻大不相同。看物理學(xué)講座的視頻不會(huì)比看YouTube消耗更多卡路里。

Neurological studies also show that glucose consumption in the brain, which was one of the hypothesized constraints for effort, doesn’t change very much when mental effort is changed, so this doesn’t work as a good explanation for effort.

關(guān)于努力受約束的一個(gè)假設(shè)是它會(huì)消耗葡萄糖。但神經(jīng)科學(xué)的研究也表明，當(dāng)改變腦力活動(dòng)時(shí)，大腦消耗葡萄糖的水平并沒有發(fā)生很大改變，因此這也不能很好地解釋努力。

Finally, sometimes we like to get up and move, expending more effort, rather than sitting still. Playing tennis is much more fun (and less effortful) than staring at a blank wall all afternoon, but the former burns way more energy.

最后，有時(shí)候我們想要站起來動(dòng)一動(dòng)，付出更多努力，而不是坐著不動(dòng)。相比于盯著一面白墻一下午，打網(wǎng)球要有趣得多（需要付出的努力也更少），但是前者會(huì)燃燒掉更多能量。

Effort as Attention

努力作為注意力

Other research points to a link between effort and the conscious mind. Attention seems to be linked to effort, as the deliberate control of attention is effortful. Daniel Kahneman, best known for his work on cognitive biases, even published a book arguing for this connection, Attention and Effort.

其他研究指出了努力和顯意識(shí)之間的聯(lián)系。注意力似乎與努力有聯(lián)系，因?yàn)橛幸庾R(shí)地控制注意力需要付出努力。以研究認(rèn)知偏誤知名的丹尼爾·卡尼曼甚至出版了一本書來論證兩者之間的聯(lián)系：《注意力與努力》（Attention and Effort）。

Still, attention alone can’t be the only explanation for effort. Some things are effortless to pay attention to, while others are hard to focus on for more than a few minutes. Watching an action movie and meditating to the flow of your own breath clearly illustrates that the object of your attention plays a big role in how effortful it is to sustain.

盡管如此，注意力不會(huì)是努力的唯一解釋。有些事不費(fèi)吹灰之力就可以注意到，另一些集中幾分鐘注意力都很困難?？磩?dòng)作片與冥想關(guān)注自己的呼吸，就清楚地說明了注意的對(duì)象對(duì)于保持注意力需要付出多少努力至關(guān)重要。

What makes focusing hard is that we’re trying to focus. That attention isn’t being held automatically, and thus needs conscious control, seems to be the relevant part for effort.

讓集中注意力變得困難的是我們?cè)噲D注意的東西。注意力不是自動(dòng)保持的，因此需要有意識(shí)地控制，這似乎是與努力有關(guān)的方面。

Effort as the Opposite of Habit

努力作為習(xí)慣的反面

Another view of effort might be that it’s the opposite of something we do automatically. Certain behaviors and patterns occur automatically. This could be because they’re acquired habits or skills, such as always brushing your teeth before sleeping or knowing how to drive a car. Other automatic behaviors are instinctive, like pulling your hand away from fire.

關(guān)于努力的另一種觀點(diǎn)可能是，它是我們自動(dòng)完成的某些事的反面。有些行為和模式會(huì)自動(dòng)發(fā)生，可能因?yàn)樗鼈兪切枰牧?xí)慣或技能，例如睡前總是刷牙，或知道如何開車。另一些自動(dòng)行為是本能的，例如把手從火上移開。

Effort, then, is what happens when we try to override an automatic pattern. Driving isn’t effortful, except when you change countries and have to drive on the other side of the road. Then you’re counteracting learned behaviors, and this requires effort.

于是，努力就是我們?cè)噲D扭轉(zhuǎn)自動(dòng)模式時(shí)發(fā)生的事。開車不費(fèi)力，除非你換了國家，需要在路的另一側(cè)駕駛。你在抵制習(xí)得的行為，這是需要努力的。

This would explain the difference between Netflix and calculus in terms of effort. For most of us, the latter involves a lot more conscious control of our thoughts and behavior, and therefore a lot more effort.

這可以解釋看網(wǎng)飛電視劇和學(xué)微積分在付出努力上的差異。對(duì)于大部分人來說，后者需要更多對(duì)思維和行為的有意控制，因此需要更多努力。

This explanation isn’t without issues, however. Games are often feel effortless, but they often require many deliberate actions that aren’t determined by habits. Doing household chores requires more “effort” yet this requires far less executive control over attention.

但這種解釋也不是沒有問題。玩游戲通常讓人覺得毫不費(fèi)力，但它們常常需要許多不由習(xí)慣決定的、深思熟慮的行為。做家務(wù)需要更多“努力”，但所需要的對(duì)注意力的執(zhí)行控制要少得多

Effort as Moving Against the Balance of Rewards

努力與回報(bào)平衡反向而行

Still another way of looking at effort might be to see it as occurring whenever you need to make a choice that involves some internal conflict. Part of you wants to eat another cookie, but a part of you thinks you probably shouldn’t. This tug of war between different parts of yourself makes self- control effortful.

另一種看待努力的方式可以是將它視為每當(dāng)你需要在某些內(nèi)在沖突間做出選擇時(shí)發(fā)生的事。你心里一部分想要再吃一塊餅干，但另一部分認(rèn)為可能不該再吃了。這種內(nèi)心的激烈斗爭(zhēng)導(dǎo)致需要付出努力來自我控制。

In this view of the mind, we all flow towards certain default behaviors like a river flowing downhill. What requires effort is moving “uphill” or resisting this downward gravity.

在對(duì)大腦的這種看法中，就像河水向山下流動(dòng)一樣，我們都會(huì)流向某種默認(rèn)的行為。向“山上”流動(dòng)，或者抵制這種向下的重力，就需要努力。

What defines the path of least resistance, instead of gravity, is something akin to a balance of pleasure or pain. The more strongly an activity is associated with an immediate reward, the less effort it requires to continue. The more you need to override an action that flows along a path of greater reward, the more effort is required.

規(guī)定最小阻力路徑的不是重力，而是某種類似快樂或痛苦平衡的狀態(tài)。一種活動(dòng)與立即的回報(bào)關(guān)聯(lián)越緊密，繼續(xù)堅(jiān)持所需的努力就越少。越是需要抵制某種沿著更大回報(bào)方向發(fā)展的行動(dòng)，所需要付出的努力就越多。

Are There Different Kinds of Effort?

存在不同種類的努力嗎？

I’ve given a handful of possible theories of effort, and there are likely more that I’ve missed. Rather than one of these being unequivocally correct, it may also be the case that the word “effort” encompasses distinct phenomena that aren’t always related.

我已經(jīng)提出了關(guān)于努力一些可能的理論，而我漏掉的可能更多。與其說其中一種理論絕對(duì)正確，更有可能的情況是，“努力”這個(gè)詞包含了彼此并不總是相關(guān)的不同現(xiàn)象。

So there may be a physical effort associated with calorie expenditure, that explains why you’re exhausted after an otherwise enjoyable soccer game, but that this effort is different from the kind spent working on math problems all day.

因此，可能存在一種與卡路里消耗相關(guān)的生理努力，能夠解釋為什么你在一場(chǎng)原本很愉快的足球比賽后會(huì)感到精疲力竭，但這種努力與一整天解數(shù)學(xué)題付出的努力是不同的。

Similarly, there may be an effort involved in controlling attention, overriding automatic behavior patterns or otherwise choosing a path that has less short-term reward than competing options. These may actually be different kinds of difficulty, with different features and different obstacles, even though we often classify them as all requiring “effort.”

類似地，可能也有一種努力涉及控制注意力，抵制自動(dòng)的行為模式，或選擇一條與其他選項(xiàng)相比更少短期回報(bào)的道路。盡管我們經(jīng)常把它們都?xì)w類為需要“努力”，但這些可能實(shí)際上是不同種類的難題，有不同的特點(diǎn)和不同的困難。

What Would Different Efforts Mean for Taking Action?

對(duì)于采取行動(dòng)而言，不同努力意味著什么？

Returning to the question I asked previously about why taking action is hard, effort is clearly a factor. Action is hard because it requires effort. While that sentence is dangerously close to a tautology, it does match the phenomenon we have all experienced: some things feel easy and others feel difficult and this is a major reason we don’t always follow through on our plans.

回到我在前面提出的問題，為什么采取行動(dòng)很困難，努力顯然是其中一個(gè)因素。采取行動(dòng)困難，因?yàn)樗枰冻雠?。盡管這句話危險(xiǎn)地像是同意反復(fù)，但它符合我們都經(jīng)歷過的現(xiàn)象：有些事情感覺很容易，而另一些讓人感到困難，這正是我們無法總是按計(jì)劃行事的主要原因。

Resolving this problem would have huge implications for our lives. If we could consistently follow- through on our plans, our lives would be much happier, more productive and successful. Even if following through on everything turned out to be impossible (as it likely is), then at least the self- awareness of when action won’t be forthcoming could allow us to accept our fate.

解決這個(gè)問題對(duì)我們的生活有巨大意義。如果我們能夠始終如一地遵循計(jì)劃，我們的生活會(huì)變得更加快樂、更加高產(chǎn)、更加成功。即使堅(jiān)持完成所有事最終證明是不可能的（這很有可能），至少在行動(dòng)不力時(shí)能夠自知，可以讓我們接受自己的命運(yùn)。

Yet, as the above explanations show, part of the issue might be that we’ve lumped together distinct problems: physical fatigue, attention control, automaticity, self-control, all under the label of “effort.” If we could tease apart these different impacts on the effort required for different tasks, we might be able to make changes to our environment, goals or tasks to ease the effort required to finally take action.

然而，正如上述解釋所顯示的，問題可能在于我們把不同方面混在了一起：生理疲倦、注意力控制、自動(dòng)性、自我控制，都在“努力”的標(biāo)簽下。不同任務(wù)需要不同的努力，如果我們能夠梳理對(duì)努力的這些不同影響，或許就能改變我們的環(huán)境、目標(biāo)或任務(wù)，從而使最終采取行動(dòng)所需要的努力變?nèi)菀住?/p>

My own thoughts are that it’s hard to deceive ourselves about the effort of an activity. At the same time, the effort required to do things isn’t static. Habits and learning make frustrating things automatic. Our environment constrains our choices. Rewards for effort change as you do more of something.

我自己的看法是，在某項(xiàng)活動(dòng)需要多少努力上欺騙自己是很難的。與此同時(shí)，做事情所需的努力并不是靜止不變的。習(xí)慣和學(xué)習(xí)可以使令人挫敗的事情自動(dòng)化。所處的環(huán)境限制了我們的選擇。隨著你做一件事做得越多，努力的回報(bào)也會(huì)發(fā)生變化。

All of these things suggest that even if exerting effort is hard, there may be detours that allow us to make some actions less effortful than they might be now. This would not only have implications for taking action, but also living better, given the amount of difficult things we need to do.

所有這些都表明，即使付出努力很困難，但可能有迂回的道路，讓我們可以使某些行為變得比現(xiàn)在費(fèi)力更少。這不僅會(huì)影響采取行動(dòng)，考慮到我們需要完成的困難事項(xiàng)的數(shù)量，這也會(huì)影響我們過上更好的生活。