When Did We Start Thinking Everything Should Be Easy?

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if everything in life were easy? Push a button and the door opens. Step onto an escalator and let it carry you upstairs. No need to wait on hold for half an hour anymore; just leave your number and someone will call you back. We don’t even have to get off the sofa to turn on the television.

We’ve become very good at finding ways to make life easier, faster and more convenient. And I certainly appreciate many of them. I’m not about to give up my washing machine or start making coffee over an open fire.

But lately I’ve been wondering whether we’ve taken this desire for convenience a little too far. Particularly as we get older, are we becoming too willing to let someone else do things for us simply because they might be inconvenient, time-consuming or a bit of a nuisance?

I’m not talking about serious difficulties or tasks that are beyond our physical abilities. I’m thinking about the ordinary things we encounter every day, the ones that require a little effort, patience or figuring things out.

Like taking out the garbage.

My Great Garbage Adventure

Last night, my neighbour kindly offered to take my garbage to the curb. I thanked her and said I’d do it myself in the morning. She insisted. I declined again. You’d think we were negotiating something considerably more important than a few bags of household waste.

This morning, I got up early, made myself a coffee in my wonderfully convenient Keurig machine, and prepared to tackle the garbage. It was only two degrees outside, so I put on a coat before getting started.

First, I emptied the little waste bins throughout my house into a large garbage bag. Then I collected the recycling from upstairs and carried everything down to the basement. There was paper to separate from the other recyclables, and two weeks’ worth of garbage to organize.

Unfortunately, my large garbage bag wasn’t quite large enough for everything. No problem. I’d figure something out.

I opened the garage door and surveyed the situation at the curb. Several neighbours had already put out their bins. One garbage bin was only half full, and there were a couple of recycling bins with room to spare.

Excellent. I had a plan.

I hauled my large garbage bag to the curb, then returned for the two smaller bags, which fitted nicely into the half-empty bin. Back to my garage again for the recycling.

I knew perfectly well that I’d piled too much into my recycling container. Sure enough, as I carried it to the street, several things fell off. I could have made two trips, but apparently that would have been too sensible.

No matter. I returned, picked everything up, and deposited the escapees into a neighbour’s recycling bin. Mission accomplished.

As I walked back to my house, I realized I was feeling rather pleased with myself. Not because I’d done anything particularly remarkable. I’d taken out the garbage, for goodness’ sake. But I’d organized the job, dealt with a couple of small problems, and finished what I’d set out to do.

I felt energized. I’d started the morning with a little project, worked out a strategy, and got it done. My neighbour could have saved me all that effort. But would that really have made my morning better?

There’s Satisfaction in Figuring Things Out

I think we sometimes underestimate how satisfying ordinary accomplishments can be.

We tend to associate achievement with big things: finishing a course, getting a promotion, or completing a major project. But there are smaller accomplishments and we don’t give them enough credit.

Fixing something that’s broken rather than replacing it. Working out how to use a new piece of technology instead of asking someone else to do it. Finding our way around an unfamiliar place. Preparing a meal that takes a little more effort than usual.

None of these things is particularly impressive on its own. Yet each gives us an opportunity to solve a problem, make a decision, or discover that we can manage something ourselves. And this is important as we age.

There’s often an assumption that as we get older we should make life as easy as possible. We should avoid unnecessary effort, accept offers of help, and look for ways to simplify our daily routines.

There are times when that makes perfect sense. If something is physically difficult, unsafe or simply too much to manage, accepting help is sensible. And sometimes we just don’t feel like doing something ourselves.

But there’s a difference between accepting help because we need it and accepting help because it’s available. I’m realizing that I don’t always choose the easiest way of doing something. It isn’t because I have something to prove; it’s because I enjoy the satisfaction of doing it myself.

Are We Missing Something by Making Life Easier?

I certainly don’t believe we need to make life unnecessarily difficult. There are enough challenges that come along without our asking for them. Nor do I think we should refuse help just to prove we’re still capable of doing everything ourselves. That’s not the point.

What concerns me is the possibility that, in our enthusiasm for convenience, we sometimes give away the very experiences that make us feel capable, independent and engaged with life.

There is pleasure in getting something done, particularly when it takes a little thought or effort. There’s satisfaction in working through a problem rather than immediately handing it over to someone else. And there’s something reassuring about discovering that we can still figure things out, even when they don’t go quite as expected.

Perhaps the question isn’t whether we can make our lives easier. We’ve already become very good at that. Maybe it’s whether making everything easier necessarily makes our lives better.

This morning, I could have stayed inside with my coffee while my neighbour took care of the garbage. Instead, I spent a little time organizing bins, making several trips to the curb, and chasing runaway recycling. And I came back into the house feeling rather pleased with myself. Not a bad way to start the day.

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Sharing Experiences:

What about you? Have you ever felt a surprising sense of accomplishment from doing something ordinary that you could easily have asked someone else to do?