von Stefan Heringer
Dear Sir or Madam,
We often complain about stress, the fast-paced nature of modern life, the lack of quiet moments, and the absence of time to pause and do nothing. This is understandable—our lives feel increasingly hectic, fueled by the internet, smartphones, constant availability, and endless distractions.
But does stillness and idleness actually make us feel better? A study by American social psychologist Timothy Wilson that I recently came across suggests otherwise.
Wilson and his team gave participants a simple task: sit alone in a room for a few minutes and do nothing except follow their own thoughts. No distractions—no phone, no book. When asked afterward about their experience, most participants found the situation highly unpleasant. They also struggled to focus on a single topic, as their thoughts wandered constantly.
But just how far would people go to escape this discomfort and find any kind of stimulation? To find out, the researchers took the experiment a step further: They gave some participants a button that would administer an unpleasant electric shock – and let them choose whether to use it. The surprising result? About a quarter of the women and two-thirds (!!) of the men pressed the button at least once within 15 minutes! And this was despite the fact that all participants had previously tested the shock and stated they would rather pay five dollars than experience it again.
Humans have a tendency to take some kind of action in stressful situations—even when that action is demonstrably worse than doing nothing. Apparently, passivity is so uncomfortable, and doing nothing requires such high self-discipline, that many people would rather inflict pain on themselves. The researchers summed up their findings with an amusing and provocative statement:
“People would rather be electrically shocked than left alone with their thoughts!”
In a crisis – such as a significant stock market downturn – doing nothing becomes even harder to bear than simply sitting in a chair. Investors' minds race through all the possible scenarios of what might happen in the coming weeks and months, how it could impact various sectors of the economy, and how it might affect their portfolios. Before they know it, they start devising a plan for what to do next, and, of course, as quickly as possible. By the way, the gender difference observed in the study is also evident in financial markets: Women tend to be significantly less prone to excessive actionism, which leads to measurably better long-term investment results at the same level of risk.
Your Fee-Only Advisor Recommends: Doing Nothing Prevents Pain
So, the next time you feel the urge to take urgent action in the stock market, resist that impulse – it is very likely to be harmful to your wealth.
Despite—or perhaps because of—these study findings, I wish you as much peaceful reflection as possible. After all, the greatest creativity and the best ideas arise in moments of complete relaxation and apparent inactivity.
Of course, only if you don’t give yourself electric shocks in the process...
Best regards,
Your
Stefan Heringer
P.S.: I welcome your thoughts at nachdenken@neunundvierzig.com.
08/02/2025
