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The Incentives Lab
HBT-COG-0002 · Dimension COG · Cognition

3-Way Life Optimization

Basics first (health/finances), then depth (mastery/impact), then altruism (widening circle).

Strategy·Mental Model·Grade B·draft· enriching…

Scientific Definition

Basics first (health/finances), then depth (mastery/impact), then altruism (widening circle).

Plain-English Definition

Basics first (health/finances), then depth (mastery/impact), then altruism (widening circle).

Feynman Explanation

Skip the basics and the rest collapses. Skip altruism and the depth feels hollow.

Core Principle

Basics first (health/finances), then depth (mastery/impact), then altruism (widening circle).

Mechanisms

Psychological

Pending editorial review.

Behavioral Economic

Basics first (health/finances), then depth (mastery/impact), then altruism (widening circle).

Neurological

Pending editorial review.

Evolutionary

Pending editorial review.

Sociological

Pending editorial review.

Computational

Pending editorial review.

Systems

Why high-performing teams need a base-camp of operational health before pursuing moonshots.

Inputs (Triggers)

Pending editorial review.

Outputs (Behaviors)

Pending editorial review.

Behavioral Signature

Skip the basics and the rest collapses. Skip altruism and the depth feels hollow.

Examples

Everyday
  • Simmons & Pagan's stacked model — most burnout is layer-skipping.
Modern (Organizational)
  • Why high-performing teams need a base-camp of operational health before pursuing moonshots.
Historical

Pending editorial review.

Famous Experiments

Pending editorial review.

Design Principles

  • Audit which layer is starved and re-allocate before optimizing the next.

Measurement Approaches

Pending editorial review.

Evidence

Evidence Grade
B (A strongest → E speculative)
Replication
★★★☆☆
Intervention Confidence
3 / 5
Consensus
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Limitations
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Open Research Questions

Pending editorial review.

Primary References

Pending editorial review.

Signature Section

The Perverse Incentive Lens™

How this behavior is exploited — and how to redesign around it.

Exploitation
Why high-performing teams need a base-camp of operational health before pursuing moonshots.
Amplifying Incentives
Why high-performing teams need a base-camp of operational health before pursuing moonshots.
Org Failure Modes
Why high-performing teams need a base-camp of operational health before pursuing moonshots.
Societal Failure Modes
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Ethical Considerations
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Redesign Strategies
Audit which layer is starved and re-allocate before optimizing the next.
Diagnostic Questions
  • Audit which layer is starved and re-allocate before optimizing the next.
Warning Signs

Pending editorial review.

Red Flags

Pending editorial review.

Intervention Playbook
Individual
Audit which layer is starved and re-allocate before optimizing the next.
Team
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Organization
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Policy
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
AI Implications
Detection
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Measurement
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Mitigation
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).
Responsible Use
Pending editorial review (HBT v1.0 auto-seed).

Interactive Mini Network

Click any neighbor to re-center the graph and follow the threads of connection.

HBT-COG-0002 · COG
3-Way Life Optimization
WLACAdaptive ChallengeADAdvantageous Diverge…APAgent ProvocateurAOArt of WarAWAsymmetric WarfareBaBackcastingCoCounterinsurgencyCoCounterpropagandaCFCynefin FrameworkDeDemoralization

Knowledge Graph Neighbors

Auto-linked to the rest of the Human Behavior Taxonomy by family, domain, dimension, and shared keywords.

Version History

v1.1.0 · 2026-06-28Initial auto-seed from corpus.