Making decisions is not always easy. Mathematics can help you with this “magic” formula.
Making important choices in life can be complex. Sometimes it seems easier to avoid them rather than face reality and take the risk of being wrong. We always wonder if the other option(s) are not better. So why not rely on science? Mathematicians have established a rule that can help you make decisions.
This is similar to the “secretary problem”. To understand, you have to imagine yourself recruiting an assistant. You then have 100 candidates and must make your decision immediately after each interview, with no way back. How to avoid making a mistake? The “37% rule” should be applied according to some experts. In this particular case, it involves rejecting the first 37 candidates outright, then choosing from that point on the first one who outperforms everyone you have already met. This limit would allow enough samples to be collected to get an idea of the options, while not waiting too long either, avoiding the risk of missing a good opportunity.
Experts have applied this theory to two crucial life choices: finding housing and finding love. In their book Algorithms to live by: the computer science of human decisions (Living by algorithms : the computer science of human decisions), researchers Brian Christian and Tom Griffiths give an example of an application for housing search. “If you want the best chance of getting the best apartment, spend 37% of your apartment search (eleven days, if you gave yourself a month to search) exploring options without committing. But after that, be prepared to immediately commit to the very first place you see that surpasses anything you’ve ever seen,” they write.
For romantic relationships, the exercise may seem more complicated. Out of 100 potential partners, you would have to wait until the 37th date to choose a person. The mathematician Michael Trick suggests another interpretation. He explained that according to his calculations, people start looking for love around 18 and stop around 40, although this is still very approximate. With the 37% rule, he estimated that the ideal time to engage in a serious relationship was therefore around 26 years old.
Taking the rule literally, he promised himself that he would propose to the first woman he loved more than all those who had come before that year. Unfortunately, his request was refused. As this example shows, science cannot yet predict everything and especially not couple problems…