Dials Not Switches

I just spent a weekend instructing climbing skills at an American Alpine Club event in Bishop. One takeaway from talking with a wide range of climbers: binary thinking (all/nothing, single solution, etc) is far too common and usually misses the point of a change or improvement.

Most challenges in life aren't going to be solved by "a solution" or "the solution" but instead by a variety of complementary nudges that move us in one direction via small increments. Hearing someone on the radio talk about "THE solution to climate change" is as silly as being asked "THE way to climb long routes faster". Often we may not even know for sure that these changes will steer us directly at a solution so much as slowly steer us away from an error or distraction. (It's why this well-reasoned website is called "Less Wrong", not "More Correct".)

After suggesting to someone that for their upcoming planned goal climb they don't bring along their cumbersome and tangleable personal anchor daisy chain or several very large HMS lockers, they incredulously looked at me and asked "Will that really make the difference?" But this question misses the point. They were thinking in switches, not dials. It will make a difference, and that difference will help move the dial towards where they want to be.