Rapid Experiment Values Discovery
Run small life experiments, keep what fits, and quit what does not
- Difficulty
- Advanced
- Time to result
- ~months to results
- Steps
- 6
- Confidence
- 91%
Steven Bartlett proposes discovering values through a sequence of lived experiments. Instead of requiring a complete identity or career plan, a person tries a job, project, or environment and observes specific reactions: perhaps the industry is engaging but the lack of autonomy is not, or management is rewarding while the workplace is wrong. They retain the elements that fit, leave the parts that do not, and design the next experiment with better information. Over repeated cycles, the path converges toward work and conditions that match the person's values. Steven notes that quitting is easier when someone trusts they will adapt, so practical safety and reversibility still matter. The method treats each exit as a data-informed transition, not automatic proof of courage.
Origin
Extracted from The Diary of a CEO
Core principles
- 01Experience reveals preferences that reflection alone may miss
- 02Each experiment should generate specific evidence
- 03Keep the elements that fit and change the rest
- 04Quitting can be information rather than failure
How to run it
- 1
Select a bounded experiment
Choose a role, project, or environment that can teach you something specific about your preferences.
Pro tip Prefer reversible tests over identity-level commitments.
- 2
Set a learning question
Decide what you want to learn about the work, people, autonomy, pace, or subject matter.
Watch out Without a question, discomfort may produce only a vague verdict.
- 3
Gather lived evidence
Do the work and record which elements create energy, frustration, or a sense of fit.
Pro tip Separate the industry, role, manager, and working conditions.
Watch out One bad day is weak evidence.
- 4
Keep and discard components
Preserve the parts you value and identify the parts you want to remove from the next experiment.
- 5
Quit or redesign deliberately
When the experiment has answered its question, leave, renegotiate, or change it with an appropriate safety plan.
Pro tip Define the next test from the evidence you just gathered.
Watch out Confidence is not a substitute for financial or personal risk planning.
- 6
Repeat toward fit
Run the next experiment with more of what worked and one or two new variables.
Watch out Do not change every variable at once if you want clear learning.
In the wild
Steven describes moving through call-centre jobs, noticing that he liked building, entrepreneurship, and sales, then starting a business. Within business he continued to avoid parts he disliked and concentrate on the work he enjoyed.
→ Repeated experience moved him toward a more personally aligned working life.
Common mistakes
Quitting without learning
Leaving without identifying what worked and what did not wastes the experiment's information.
Changing everything at once
If the role, industry, location, and schedule all change together, it becomes harder to know what created the improvement.
Ignoring downside
The host explicitly notes that his approach was supported by confidence that he would be fine; others may need a safer transition plan.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for people early in a career or facing reversible choices with incomplete self-knowledge.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal for irreversible decisions or situations where quitting would create serious unplanned harm.
From the transcript
“increase the amount of experiments you're doing and quit faster”
“you found something you enjoy”
From the episode
Productivity Expert: How To Finally Stay Productive: Ali Abdaal