The Law of Instrument; How Not to Suck at Problem-solving
I am a sucker for results; but it’s not just me.
We are all guilty.
But at times we grow overconfident with a method that produced results that we then try to use it everywhere.
This is a bias, and it’s known as the “Law of Instrument”, or “Maslow’s hammer.”
The law refers to Abraham Maslow’s bang-on quote: "I suppose it is tempting, if the only tool you have is a hammer, to treat everything as if it were a nail.”
We approach the world with the tools we have, and how well we do at problem-solving depends on the richness of our tools.
The mental toolbox
The way we solve problems in real life is akin to a mechanic working in his workshop.
Now he’s got a toolbox, and in that box is a range of tools that serve different purposes. Some fixing will require a hammer; some pliers, and some others will require screwdrivers.
Our mechanic, out of a shortage of tools, can try to use a tool to solve a problem out of what it’s designed for, but when it comes to efficiency in fixing things, having more tools saves time, and gets things done better than having less.
