Dopamine management

Key Insight

● The key thing for motivation is dopamine. Through this course you’ll notice that we actually create methods and systems for dopamine management, and if we succeed, everything else will be easy. Therefore it’s important to understand how dopamine works. If we try to fight against dopamine, we will surely fail. Not even superhuman mental strength will motivate the body to be productive if there is no dopamine, and that is actually the wrong approach. We must create circumstances in which useful things get done by us, and things that negatively affect our effectiveness should be hard to access.

● What is dopamine for? Motivation, action, drive, habit, repetition. We can also view it as a trigger, or as a “switch that lights a fire” and moves us out of inertia. Very often you will notice you need a lot of energy to start an activity, and once you start, it is actually easy and doesn’t require much energy. The culprit is dopamine, and it is probably some activity that doesn’t release much dopamine. There are activities that require a lot of energy, but we cannot wait to repeat them (video games, sex) and that is because they release a lot of dopamine. Video games are an example where your brain can work at 100% for hours on end with 100% concentration. The brain consumes a large amount of energy, but because this activity continuously releases large amounts of dopamine, we want to repeat it and keep doing it.

● What influences dopamine release and by how much relative to baseline? Here are some examples:

● Chocolate 1.5x.

● Sex 2x.

● Training 2x.

● Nicotine 2.5x.

● Exposure to cold 2.5x.

● Cocaine 2.5x.

● Social networks 2.5x.

● Unpredictable reward (gambling, fishing, betting, games, hunting) 5x.

● Amphetamines 10x.

● It’s important to note that mixing can produce multiples, so we can easily hit 20x or even 50x, which long-term creates big problems.

● We notice that all these activities are more or less addictive (we want to repeat them), so we can better understand how dopamine works.

● What’s the problem with consistently high dopamine release? The dopamine threshold keeps shifting, and we always need more to maintain the same subjective feeling. Activities that release less dopamine (like reading, efficient work, training, meditation) no longer satisfy us, and we want only activities that release a lot of dopamine.

● “Cheap” dopamine is released through activities that are easily accessible and economically cheap, and release a large amount of dopamine. Precisely because they are easily accessible and cheap, and release a lot of dopamine, many people have trouble restraining from these activities, and an infinite loop is created. Some examples of "cheap" dopamine are: narcotics, alcohol, sweets, snacks, nicotine, social networks, adult content, gambling, games...

● Now someone may say: “Okay, Luka, you listed absolutely everything fun in the world,” and yes, that’s somewhat true, however the goal is not to completely eliminate all these activities, but to create a system where we have them at appropriate times and in appropriate amounts, so that they do not affect effectiveness in the long run.

● What happens when we release a lot of “cheap” dopamine?

○ If we release it “artificially” and too much, a gap forms, where we don’t do anything. No internal motivation can help us finish anything useful.

■ A good example is a hangover after alcohol – you surely notice that the next day you don’t want to do anything, and sometimes longer than a day. We can push ourselves to work, but it’s forced, and it doesn’t feel good.

○ If we release a lot, that gap can last days, and it can even become chronic, where long-term depression arises (we are happy only in the moment we release “cheap” dopamine).

○ Sit and scroll social networks for 2 hours, then pick up a book... won’t go... the dopamine level isn’t high enough and the brain demands stronger stimulation. A “dopamine reset” level is needed so the brain can follow a “less interesting” book.

● Dopamine can also be seen as a “currency” and we must spend it thoughtfully and moderately. We have a limited dopamine budget for a day, and success that day will very likely depend on how we allocate that dopamine.

● Quantity and timing! That’s the answer. We need to find the right amount, and more importantly, the right timing for when we want to do dopamine-releasing activities.

○ General principle: In the first 8-12 hours after waking up we shouldn’t have any cheap dopamine, and all dopamine must be allocated to productive activities.

○ When we have exhausted the “strong” dopamine, and done everything needed, we can “get distracted” and relax, and that’s 100% okay. For most people, like me, the strong dopamine is tied to the morning dose of caffeine.

○ On days off we can be more relaxed, however we shouldn’t overdo it, because “cheap” dopamine can hinder us for several days after it’s released.

○ A strong source of “cheap” dopamine before sleep can cause sleep problems, so it’s best to avoid it at least 2 hours before bed.

● You may see mentions of Adderall, Ritalin, Armodafinil and Modafinil as miracle focus pills, and they may help in the short term, however in the long term they cause big problems and should absolutely be avoided. It’s much better to build a natural and sustainable long-term system.

● What is the best strategy to defend against cheap dopamine? Add friction! How? For all activities that release cheap dopamine we can add a few steps before they become accessible. Dopamine often works subconsciously and succeeds in shutting down the frontal cortex of the brain (responsible for thinking) completely, pushing us to release more without much thought. You’ll probably catch yourself turning on some game, news or social network without much thought, and you’re not even sure why you did it. How to prevent this:

○ Completely delete apps with cheap dopamine (the best solution).

○ Block websites that provide cheap dopamine (the best solution).

○ Add a pause before using such an app.

○ Slow down the internet for such apps/websites.

○ Add passwords/additional steps.

○ Over time your need for cheap dopamine will diminish if you manage to remove it, and dopamine will start to release more strongly on “good” activities.

● If you’d like to know more, look at the books: “Dopamine Nation,” “Molecule of More.”