100 Things: Every Designer Needs to Know About People

57. People are Inherently Lazy

It might be exaggerating a bit to say that people are inherently lazy. But research does show us that people will do the least amount of work possible to get a task done.

Is Lazy Another Word for Efficient?

Over eons of evolution, humans have learned that they will survive longer and better if they conserve their energy. You want to spend enough energy to have enough resources (food, water, sex, shelter), but beyond that you are wasting your energy if you spend too much time running around getting or doing more stuff. Of course, questions about how much is enough, and whether we have enough stuff yet, and how long should the stuff last (and on and on), still vex us, but putting the philosophical questions aside, ...