Too Lazy To Learn

I think we are all guilty of this to varying degrees. Often it's because the learning process is time consuming , expensive and even difficult. Sometimes it's because it's time consuming. While I can doodle about on most musical instruments I can't actually play apart from basic rhythm accompaniments and maybe the odd simple solo. However something like Trace Bundy's take on Pachelbel's "Canon" just leaves me awestruck. Learning takes practice, time and dedication.

There are other instances where people cannot master computer basics, yet can drive a car. I point out that , generally , learning to drive a car is a lot more complex, difficult and dangerous than using a computer, but lots of drivers eschew computers as the black arts.

I had an instance recently with a works expenses system which required scanned copies of receipts to be emailed to managers then stored in various unspecified locations which made auditing very difficult. I built a system where the image was included with the actual claim , so therefore it was much simpler to enter and far easier to audit.

It was knocked back because some users preferred the old method as , in their opinion it was less hassle. So more work was seen as less hassle, more complexity was seen as “less hassle”. Saving audit time was seen as an issue for people submitting expense claims.

Sometimes it's the fact that people refuse to use shortcuts and simple methods because they have used a particular method of doing things and would rather take fifteen minutes doing it their tried and trusted way rather than the two minute simple method that has exactly the same result. It's like they would rather gather wood and make a torch that they burn to provide illumination but you would rather switch on the electric light.

The same could be said of cooking, although millions do watch cooking programs for many of those cookery consists of sticking a ready meal in a microwave or ordering a takeaway. I sometimes have a mental battle over this, I can cook an Aloo Chole in about two hours and it costs me about a pound plus heating (it does for two servings) or I can order a portion from Rajnagar (my local Indian Restaurant) for six pounds. I value my time at a lot more than six pounds an hour so I often go for the takeaway option , although that is a decision I have arrived at by weighing up all the options and making the best decision rather than laziness.

One of the things I have noticed is that cooking vegan / vegetarian is usually much simpler than cooking with meat or fish, so my next experiment is a chickpea and apricot curry. I think that should be quite good. The curry is one of Jack Monroes (which uses peaches with one option for mandarin oranges which I think didn’t quite work for me) and you can check it out here , it is both cheap , tasty and nutritious and one of my favourites.

Jamie Oliver has a book called "Just Five Ingredients" so that gives people an option to get into cooking for themselves very easily, but again, for some people reading is too much of a chore.

With books I lose myself in a whole other universe but often people say to me “Why read a book when you can watch the film?” , it is always too much effort to even open a page.

There are probably a million other examples but I think that's enough to be going on with and I will leave you with Trace Bundy's TED Talk showing what you can achieve with practice, it is absolutely beautiful , listen while you read , then maybe watch again.