Don't Eat the Marshmallow!

In a famous study, researchers provided children with a dilemma. "Here is a marshmallow," the researchers tell the child. "You can eat it now, or you can wait 15 minutes before eating the marshmallow, then you get two!"

You can imagine the agonizing choice for these pre-schoolers. "I could wait and get two, but this marshmallow looks so good!" Two-thirds of the children ate the marshmallow. Who could blame them?

The fancy word psychologists use here is delayed gratification. Sometimes we need to choose between a smaller immediate benefit or a larger delayed benefit.

Do you go to work right out of high school to earn $12 an hour, or do you wait 4-6 years to get a Bachelor's degree and a job that pays $20 an hour?

Do you have fun tonight with your friends, or do you study tonight to get good grades?

Do you take out a high interest loan to buy a fancy new car, or do you save up your money for a significant down payment?

Joachim de Posada has a message for you: don't eat the marshmallow! You will be much more successful in the long run.