Law 23 of Expectation

This is a simple law of nature, but one which is very handy:

A Human feels Satisfied in proportion to What Was Received, divided by What Was Expected.

That’s it.

In other words, if you order a tall latte drink expecting a certain taste, and you get a tall latte drink that tastes as expected, generally you’ll feel satisfied.

But what if the latte drink is larger or better-tasting than you expected? Since you got more than expected, you’ll be greatly satisfied.

But what if the latte drink is perhaps OK, but it’s smaller or less tasty than you expected? Now the satisfaction is divided by your expectation level, and you’ll likely feel disatisfied.

But what if the lattes are generally small and poor in this particular place, and that’s what you expect?

In this case, since your expectation is met, you’ll still generally feel satisfied.

So whether or not a human feels satisfied in a given transaction depends not only upon what is received, but in comparison to what was expected.

Now, if you react this way, wouldn’t your customer also generally feel that way? For example, suppose you sell apples and you walk through the park calling out, “Apples! Guaranteed to be the most mouth-watering and unbelievably delicious fruit you have ever experienced! Fifty cents each!”

So some guy buys an apple, and feeling curious he bites it. Now he complains that it tastes the same as the apples from Safeway, right?

But suppose that you’d walked along calling out, “Apples! Pretty good for this time of year! Tasty apples! Only fifty cents!” And now a similar guy buys and bites a similar apple. The difference here is: he’s satisfied.

Because you gave him an expectation that could be satisfied by the apple he received. By managing his expectation, you arranged to provide him with satisfaction. Good idea. And of course, it’s not just for your customers. What about your professor, your boss, your girlfriend?

Knowing this important secret of the universe, go forth and prosper.