Author: Kim Lear
While The Future of Optimization has permeated our culture at large, it is Gen Z that has grown up in era when technology has enabled them to optimize everything from their sleep and their workouts to their study habits and even their intellect. Last year, I interviewed executives who work in the vitamin division of […]
While The Future of Optimization has permeated our culture at large, it is Gen Z that has grown up in era when technology has enabled them to optimize everything from their sleep and their workouts to their study habits and even their intellect.
Last year, I interviewed executives who work in the vitamin division of a large corporation. In each interview I asked, “What are the big trends shaping vitamin sales?” Aside from obvious Covid-related trends, something else came up repeatedly. It went something like this:
“These young customers don’t want to buy a regular multivitamin pulled from the shelf. Noooo. Everyone wants their personalized vitamin packets built just for them.
They couldn’t possibly take a trusted and effective multivitamin! They need a special little packet based on their own special snowflake-like uniqueness.”
I chuckled. Kind of. The snowflake thing. Got it.
As I reflected on The Future of Optimization conversation, I realized that I, a vitamin-taker, have never purchased an off-the-shelf multivitamin.
I don’t consider myself particularly unique; I simply had a blood draw at the doctor’s office after having my second baby and realized that I was low on zinc, magnesium, and vitamin D, but basically good on everything else. I didn’t avoid the multivitamin due to my “uniqueness.”
I did it because a multivitamin isn’t the optimal vitamin for my body.
Personalization is misunderstood. People don’t purchase personalized products because they think of themselves as unique snowflakes. People purchase personalized products because those products happen to be more optimal — more perfect, more useful, and more effective.
Optimization entered mainstream conversation in the early 2000s. A familiar example for some of you may be Tim Ferriss’s books, The 4-Hour Workweek, The 4-Hour Body, and The 4-Hour Chef, all focused on lifestyle optimization. If we implement the right tools, routines, rituals, and habits, Ferriss tells us, our time will be spent more perfectly, more effectively, and more usefully.
While The Future of Optimization has permeated our culture at large, it is Gen Z that has grown up in era when technology has enabled them to optimize everything from their sleep and their workouts to their study habits and even their intellect.
I’ll give you an example: A stationary at-home bike can be a convenient way to work out, but a Peloton can help you optimize your workout by understanding your personal goals, collecting data about your speed and strength, and suggesting programming that will help you not just exercise, but advance. Convenience seeks to eliminate effort; optimization seeks to perfect.
The unintended consequences of this The Future of Optimization obsession are many, and I’ll write about them in another essay. As some of you may already be thinking, our endless quest for self-improvement and perfection has downsides.
For now, we’ll explore the implications for the future.
1. Throughout the pandemic, there have been sentimental conversations about the loss of meaningful workplace interactions. The water-cooler talk, serendipitous conversation, the general white space of in-person work.
However, the traditional workplace also has a lot of meaningless interactions. Distractions, gossip, workplace politics, useless meetings, etc. While much of the white-collar workforce has been working from home, many people have figured out how to optimize their time.
They use 15-minute breaks for exercise, throw laundry in the machine between meetings, spend lunchtime with children, etc. This kind of personal control could continue to reduce tolerance for suboptimal use of time.
2. The Wall Street Journal recently reported on a trend of remote workers taking on two full-time jobs.
There are some ethical issues with this but this idea of “poly-work” was discussed even before most companies were forced to be remote. Some workers are figuring out how to make as much as money as possible by optimizing their tech and their time.
3. Jerry Seinfeld once said in an interview, “Nothing truly great is efficient.” Taking a hard look at optimization presents an opportunity for productive cross-generational mentorship. Seasoned leaders can revisit processes and procedures objectively and explore where opportunities for The Future of Optimization exist.
On the flip side, young employees can be trained to identify the best places for suboptimal experiences. Innovation, creativity, and team culture can have a hard time flourishing in an environment hyper-focused on optimization.
4. Brands can reframe personalization as The Future of Optimization, not specialness. Rather than asking, “How can we make our customer feel special?” Companies can ask, “How can we make this product or service as effective as possible for the people we’re trying to serve?”
The bottom line is: the ability to optimize has already brought us many benefits and consequences are sure to follow, but our societal drive for perfection isn’t going away anytime soon.
The Future of Optimization Article written by Kim Lear and originally published on Inlay Insights
Contact Us at WeSpeak Global and follow us on Twitter
Author Profile
The articles, video and images embedded on these pages are from various speakers and talent.
These remain the property of its owner and are not affiliated with or endorsed by WeSpeak Global.
Is Complacency Putting You Risk? Lessons From a Fighter Pilot Flying taught me a valuable lesson about life: complacency can cause serious problems for ourselves and those around us. In this newsletter, share a personal story about the dangers of complacency including the following topics: Complacency Consequences What leads to complacency? Signs Complacency is Creeping […]
Punch-drunk public runs out of faith in its leaders, article written by Tony Leon who is a Political Commentator in South Africa. Cascading corruption, sky-high unemployment, and state incompetence. This daily diet of misery is now so mundane and common that what once induced shock and outrage in us is shrugged off. We have, as […]
I realised everything you do is marketing after I recently stayed at a five-star hotel and found a major marketing problem lurking in the wardrobe in my room. Upon check-in I was welcomed enthusiastically, and my membership status recognised with a room upgrade. I was even presented with a welcome gift to thank me […]
As Gerd often says that we keep asking the wrong question i.e. ‘what will 2022 bring?’ Instead, we should ask ‘what kind of future do we want?‘ This is a key point Gerd also reiterates in his year-end interviews; below. The Hong Kong Economic Journal, asked Gerd to talk about the future and what’s happening in a […]
To succeed, you have to Training Others to establish boundaries. But boundaries are only as good as your ability to communicate them. If people don’t know your boundaries, they become ineffective and are more likely to be discarded. Training other people on your boundaries requires learning how to say no. That doesn’t […]
Sara Sutton Fell, the founder of 1 Million for Work Flexibility, and CEO and founder of FlexJobs, shares tips on how to negotiate workplace flexibility. Workplace flexibility is not just an issue that impacts working women; working men are also eager for solutions that help them balance work and home, and a new survey […]
It’s that time of the year for New Years resolutions again, where most of us put together a comprehensive list of resolutions and goals to be a better version of ourselves by thinking what we would ideally look like in the future: lose weight, get fitter, be a better spouse, etc and Why New Years’ […]
THE RISE OF THE MINI TYRANTS, we all know the type. Dress a man in a hi-vis vest, armed with a clipboard and a biro, and you’ve just built yourself a mini tyrant. You’ve licensed a tiny authoritarian to impose the rules verbatim, as he sees fit, no matter the context or circumstances. It’s worrying […]
Our Mission
© All rights reserved 2025. Created using VOXEL THEME
