Instant Gratification

I was at lunch with two good friends yesterday and we ended up talking about why in the world people do dumb stuff. Why do people smoke? Why do people refuse to exercise even when their doctors tell them how much better it will make them feel? Why do I eat cookies virtually every time they are offered to me? Why do people knowingly break commandments? Not everyone does these things, but some people can't seem to help themselves--like me with the cookies. As I thought about why I don't do some of those things I realized maybe we humans are much more simple than we think. I don't smoke because I think it is stinky and gross. Not having a huge increase in risk for a zillion kinds of cancer and keeping the Word Of Wisdom are especially nice side benefits, but they are much too distant and nebulous to anyone contemplating their first cigarette. My real first reason is the immediate one. Why do I exercise? I have SO MUCH more energy when I do. And exercising first thing wakes me up and and makes me feel like I've accomplished something good in my day. Decreasing risk of heart disease and managing my weight are wonderful too, but I might not do it if it really hurt me to exercise in the first place. Why am I so much more likely to bring reusable bags to Whole Foods than any other grocery store? Whole foods gives you their approval and doesn't act like you're weird when you hand them your bags. (Admit it, even stores that give you a 5 cent discount for each bag act slightly put out that they have to figure out what to do with your non-standard bags.) Whole Foods thinks you're COOL when you bring your own. It's only the dummies that need the (now only paper) bags they supply. The whole saving the planet thing is merely a side benefit. This is also an idea that came up as I was listening to my Shamu book. You've got to make doing the right thing pleasant if you want it to happen. It has to be MORE pleasant than doing the wrong thing. So I've decided I need to think of the immediate good that comes from doing the things I think I should do. Here are a few:

reading the scriptures and praying: fastest way to feel God's love for me. Instant high. Especially works if you're looking for the feeling while you read and pray.
helping someone: Another instant high, but it only works when you do it cheerfully.
cleaning my kitchen: makes me feel organized and capable.
making a shopping list: gives me a finite number of things to look for. I don't know if this is enough pleasure to really stick...
grocery shopping: ummmm, a little help please?! Remember, I need something immediately satisfying.
gardening: ummmm, I need your ideas here too. (Especially you, M'Li.) It feels like work to me. Tomatoes in 3 months are a little too far away.

Maybe I need to come up with some immediate positive associations with those to-dos I really don't want to do. I think that is part of what keeps "check-box people" going. They really get a thrill out of checking stuff off lists. I need to learn to find that thrill for cleaning floors. (A book on CD at the same time?) And maintaining my husband's computer. (Chocolate???) And building my food storage. (Uh oh, there's the grocery monster again...) With enough positive feedback, I think you can grow into liking things for the right reason, even. I used to be a check-box girl with the scriptures, after all. I think with the right positive self-reinforcement I could learn to like all sorts of good things. And shake at the very appearance of sin.