Quiet Frontier

Why We Add Instead of Subtract

Video (11:41): Have you ever found yourself adding another task to an already full plate, thinking it would help you get ahead? It could be because of additive bias, our ingrained inclination to solve problems by adding something new, rather than taking things away.

Key moments

Transcript

00:00:06 Have you ever found yourself adding

00:00:08 another task to an already full plate,

00:00:11 thinking it’s going to help you get ahead?

00:00:14 Maybe signing up for a course, taking on a

00:00:17 new project, or committing to another

00:00:20 obligation? I recently did that, and

00:00:25 within hours, I felt completely

00:00:27 overwhelmed. It got me thinking, why do we

00:00:32 so often reach for addition as a solution,

00:00:37 while viewing subtraction as a step

00:00:40 backward? It’s a surprisingly common

00:00:44 pattern, and it speaks to a deeper

00:00:47 tendency in how we approach well-being and

00:00:51 progress. Researchers have identified a

00:00:57 cognitive tendency called additive bias.

00:01:02 Essentially, it’s our ingrained

00:01:04 inclination to solve problems by adding

00:01:08 something new, rather than taking things

00:01:12 away. When faced with friction or a

00:01:17 challenge, our first instinct is to

00:01:20 introduce a tool, a rule, a system,

00:01:24 another layer to the existing complexity.

00:01:28 We rarely stop to consider what we could

00:01:32 remove. This isn’t a sign of poor

00:01:36 thinking. It’s a mental shortcut. Adding

00:01:40 feels like taking action, like making

00:01:43 progress. Subtraction, on the other hand,

00:01:48 can feel like loss. Studies in behavioral

00:01:51 economics, pioneered by thinkers like

00:01:54 Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky, have

00:01:58 shown that losses actually register more

00:02:01 strongly in our minds than gains. So

00:02:06 naturally, we shy away from subtraction,

00:02:09 even when it might be the most effective

00:02:12 solution. But additive bias isn’t just

00:02:17 about our individual psychology. We live

00:02:22 in a culture that relentlessly equates

00:02:25 growth with expansion. Think about it.

00:02:29 More credentials, more output, more

00:02:32 platforms, more optimization. Even the

00:02:37 pursuit of well-being has become framed as

00:02:40 a project of accumulation. Adding

00:02:44 mindfulness practices, self-care routines,

00:02:48 or productivity hacks. If we’re feeling

00:02:53 strained, the advice is often to add

00:02:57 another method. If we feel uncertain, add

00:03:02 a certification. If we feel behind, add

00:03:08 another commitment. The underlying

00:03:11 assumption is that more inputs will

00:03:15 eventually, and inevitably, lead to better

00:03:18 outcomes. However, human capacity isn’t

00:03:23 infinite. Every addition draws from our

00:03:27 finite resources. Our time, our attention,

00:03:32 our energy, and even our sleep. Gains in

00:03:37 one area can quietly create deficits in

00:03:41 others. These trade-offs are often

00:03:44 invisible when we’re making the decision,

00:03:46 because we’re focused on the promise of

00:03:49 improvement.

00:03:52 Subtraction, by contrast, doesn’t offer

00:03:56 that narrative of advancement. It doesn’t

00:04:00 expand our identity. It simply reduces our

00:04:04 load. And in a culture obsessed with

00:04:08 expansion, that reduction can easily feel

00:04:12 like failure.

00:04:16 This pattern of accumulation isn’t limited

00:04:19 to individuals. It happens in institutions

00:04:23 as well. Think about organizations that

00:04:27 accumulate policies and regulations. New

00:04:32 rules are added to address emerging

00:04:35 problems. But rarely are old ones removed

00:04:39 when those problems are solved.

00:04:42 Bureaucracies expand. Not necessarily

00:04:46 through intentional inefficiency, but

00:04:50 because addition feels responsible. This

00:04:55 complexity builds layer upon layer. And

00:04:59 the same logic applies to our personal

00:05:02 lives. We accumulate roles, goals,

00:05:06 subscriptions, and obligations. We add

00:05:10 without pruning. Over time, this can lead

00:05:15 to a loss of coherence. Improvement

00:05:19 becomes indistinguishable from simply

00:05:22 more. Withdrawing from that course I

00:05:26 mentioned earlier wasn’t a dramatic act.

00:05:30 It didn’t require explanation or

00:05:33 justification. It simply removed a layer

00:05:37 that wasn’t serving me. The relief I felt

00:05:42 was significant. And it revealed a crucial

00:05:45 insight. Subtraction restores proportion.

00:05:50 True growth doesn’t always require

00:05:52 expansion. Sometimes it requires the

00:05:58 discipline of refusal. In a culture that

00:06:03 rewards visible accumulation, choosing not

00:06:07 to add can feel counterintuitive. But

00:06:12 often, clarity doesn’t emerge from

00:06:15 introducing another improvement. It

00:06:19 emerges from removing something that’s no

00:06:22 longer aligned with our best interests.

00:06:26 Simplicity isn’t regression. It’s the

00:06:30 discipline of coherence in a world that

00:06:33 often confuses expansion with genuine

00:06:37 progress. It’s about making space for what

00:06:42 truly matters, by consciously letting go

00:06:46 of what doesn’t. So how do we break free

00:06:51 from this add more reflex? We have to

00:06:55 practice a different definition of

00:06:57 success. Not by what we pile onto our

00:07:01 lives, but by what we remove with

00:07:05 intention. That starts with questioning

00:07:09 things we usually treat as automatic.

00:07:13 Commitments, possessions, habits,

00:07:17 subscriptions, even certain routines that

00:07:21 once made sense but no longer do.

00:07:25 Subtractive thinking shows up in ordinary

00:07:28 places. Simplifying your schedule.

00:07:32 Decluttering your space. Streamlining your

00:07:37 digital life. Quietly reducing the number

00:07:41 of open loops your mind is forced to

00:07:44 track. And here’s the key. Before you add

00:07:48 a new solution, pause long enough to run

00:07:52 one question first. Is this truly going to

00:07:56 improve my life? Or is it just one more

00:08:00 layer added to the clutter? One way to

00:08:04 make subtraction feel more natural is to

00:08:07 build it into your default process. Start

00:08:12 with a subtract first mindset. When you

00:08:16 feel friction, don’t immediately go

00:08:19 shopping for a new method. Look at what’s

00:08:22 already there. Are you doing the same

00:08:25 thing in two places? Are there

00:08:27 redundancies? Is there something you’re

00:08:31 maintaining out of guilt, habit, or pure

00:08:34 momentum? Next, make reviews normal. Not

00:08:41 in a perfectionistic way. Just a recurring

00:08:45 pruning habit. A weekly scan of your to-do

00:08:49 list. A monthly inbox clean-out. A

00:08:53 seasonal sweep through your home or your

00:08:55 digital files. These reviews aren’t about

00:08:59 becoming super minimalistic. They’re about

00:09:03 preventing life from becoming an

00:09:06 unexamined pile. And finally, apply a

00:09:11 little 80-20 realism. Most of our results

00:09:15 come from only a small fraction of our

00:09:18 actions. If you can identify the few

00:09:21 things that consistently pay off for you,

00:09:25 the high-impact habits, responsibilities,

00:09:29 and relationships, you can protect them.

00:09:33 And when you protect them, you naturally

00:09:37 start letting the low-return obligations

00:09:40 fall away. That’s what I didn’t see fully

00:09:45 until I withdrew from that course. It

00:09:49 wasn’t a failure. It was a correction. And

00:09:53 maybe that’s the reframing. Subtraction

00:09:56 isn’t giving up. It’s choosing coherence

00:10:00 over accumulation. It’s trading more for

00:10:06 enough. And discovering that enough often

00:10:10 feels like relief. And sometimes it even

00:10:13 feels like freedom. Thanks for taking some

00:10:17 time to join me here today. If these

00:10:20 thoughts connect and you find them useful,

00:10:23 you’ll find more like this at Quiet

00:10:25 Frontier. It’s where I share reflections

00:10:29 on mind, meaning, purpose, and connection.

00:10:34 There’s a link in the description. Thanks

00:10:38 again for watching. Take good care.