“This is what everyone doesn't understand. If you gain, you will surely lose.”
This is the “Law of Plus and Minus” discussed by Akihiro Miwa on the show Aura no Izumi.
Just as the Earth has light and shadow, yin and yang, and the sun and the moon, everything in this world is built on a balance of positive and negative. Therefore, if you gain something, you will inevitably lose something.
While this is often taken as a spiritual concept, this phenomenon can actually be explained largely through psychological research.
There is actual research showing that people who won large lottery prizes returned to the same level of happiness they had before winning just one year later.
In this article, I will break down the Law of Plus and Minus using four psychological theories.
By the time you finish reading, you should clearly see the true nature of that feeling of “gaining something but not feeling fulfilled.”
1. Lottery Winners Returned to Their Original Happiness Levels After One Year
First, let's look at the core of the Law of Plus and Minus: the idea that “happiness doesn't last even if you gain.”
In 1978, psychologist Philip Brickman and others published a study that is still talked about today.
The research team compared these three groups:
- 22 major lottery winners
- 29 people who suffered paralysis in accidents
- 22 people from the general public who experienced neither
Common sense would suggest that the winners would be the happiest and the accident victims the most miserable.
However, the results were different.
There was no significant difference in happiness levels between the lottery winners and the general public.
Furthermore, the winners experienced significantly less joy from small daily events compared to the general public. Talking with friends, eating breakfast, watching TV—they could no longer enjoy these ordinary pleasures as much as before.
Researchers cited two reasons:
One is the “Contrast Effect.” Because they compare everything to the intense experience of winning, daily joys feel faded.
The other is “Habituation.” Humans inevitably get used to any new joy they acquire.
You gained something big. In exchange, you lost the ability to appreciate the small things.
This is exactly what the Law of Plus and Minus describes.
Practice Methods
- Especially after achieving a major result, consciously count small daily joys.
- Question the premise that “I will be happy if I get this.”
- Maintain a pillar of satisfaction other than “gaining,” assuming that happiness levels will eventually return to baseline.
2. From the Moment You Gain It, It Becomes Something You Might Lose
The Law of Plus and Minus makes another important point: those who gain more carry more anxiety.
This, too, can be explained by psychology.
“Prospect Theory,” published in 1979 by Nobel laureate Daniel Kahneman and psychologist Amos Tversky.
This demonstrated the human trait of “Loss Aversion.”
Humans feel the pain of losing something more than twice as strongly as the joy of gaining the same amount.
What does this trait do to someone who has acquired something?
When you didn't have it, you couldn't lose it. But from the moment you have it, it turns into “something with the potential to be lost.” And the pain of loss is felt twice as strongly as the joy of gain.
Gain status, and the fear of losing it is born. Gain wealth, and you fear it decreasing. Gain beauty, and you fear aging.
When Miwa-san said, “Those with power experience loneliness,” it can be explained by this structure.
Gaining and carrying the fear of loss come as a set.
Practice Methods
- Don't think the anxiety you feel when gaining something is “abnormal.” It is a standard human specification.
- Regularly check if you have too many things that make you feel “it's over if I lose this.”
- Consciously nurture foundations that won't shake even if you lose things (health, relationships, self-trust).
3. Things Determined by Comparison with Others Will Never Satisfy You
So, why are there things that “don't satisfy even if gained” and things that do?
Economist Robert Frank explains this by dividing goods into two types:
Positional Goods and Non-positional Goods.
Positional goods are things whose value is determined by comparison with others: income, titles, house size, brand-name possessions.
Non-positional goods are things whose value is determined regardless of comparison: health, free time, love, good relationships.
There is a famous thought experiment by Frank.
He asks which world you would rather live in:
- A: Your house is about 370 square meters, but the neighbors' houses are about 560 square meters.
- B: Your house is about 280 square meters, but the neighbors' houses are about 185 square meters.
In terms of absolute size, A is larger. Yet, many people choose B.
In other words, people determine satisfaction based on “whether it's larger than those around them” rather than the size itself.
And the trouble with positional goods is that there is always someone better. Since value is determined by comparison, there is no end to fulfillment. No matter how much you gain, a new target for comparison appears.
Many of the things described in the Law of Plus and Minus as “unfulfilling despite being gained” are these positional goods.
On the other hand, non-positional goods like health, free time, and love do not require comparison. That's why satisfaction lasts longer.
Practice Methods
- Try categorizing the things you are currently chasing into positional or non-positional goods.
- Chasing positional goods isn't bad in itself. Just do it knowing there is “no finish line.”
- Consciously increase the proportion of time and money spent on non-positional goods.
4. The Moment You Get It, It Becomes Something You Can't Let Go
The Law of Plus and Minus also has an aspect of being “bound by what you have gained.”
This is explained by the “Endowment Effect” proposed by behavioral economist Richard Thaler.
There is a famous experiment.
Students are divided into two groups. One group is given a mug and asked, “How much would you sell this for?” The other group is given nothing and asked, “How much would you buy this for?”
It's the same mug. Yet, the selling price suggested by those who had it was about twice the buying price suggested by those who didn't.
The moment people acquire something, they begin to value it higher than it actually is. That's why they can't let go.
What happens when this effect takes hold?
You cling to a job that doesn't suit you. You continue a relationship that isn't working. You try to protect a title that has already served its purpose.
The more a person has gained, the more things they have to protect, making it harder to move.
The point in the Law of Plus and Minus that “people who gain status are bound by it and lose their freedom” can largely be explained by this endowment effect.
Practice Methods
- For things you feel you can't let go of, ask yourself: “If I were to buy this now, would I buy it at that price?”
- Check if you are making decisions based solely on “because I've built this up so far.”
- Regularly take time to review what you own from a zero-base perspective.
5 Patterns Common to “People Tossed Around by the Law of Plus and Minus”
- Feeling an inexplicable emptiness immediately after achieving something big.
- Having a strong fear of losing what you've gained, spending most of your energy on protection.
- Goals are determined almost entirely by comparison with others.
- Unable to let go of things that no longer fit because of the effort already invested.
- Vaguely fearing that “if I become happy, something bad will happen to that extent.”
Self-Check: 10 Signs You Are Maintaining the Balance of Plus and Minus
- [ ] I can still enjoy small daily pleasures after a big achievement.
- [ ] I can accept the anxiety that arises when gaining something as natural.
- [ ] I have a foundation that won't shake even if I lose things (health, relationships, self-trust).
- [ ] I can categorize what I am chasing into positional and non-positional goods.
- [ ] I have at least one axis of satisfaction that is not based on comparison with others.
- [ ] I consciously spend time and money on health and free time.
- [ ] I can put into words why I feel I can't let go of certain things.
- [ ] I don't make judgments based solely on “because I've built this up so far.”
- [ ] I can still take on challenges knowing that happiness levels will eventually return to baseline.
- [ ] I use the knowledge that “if you gain, you lose” for preparation, not for fear.
If 7 or more apply, you are already balancing the plus and minus yourself. Even if it's 3 or fewer, there's no problem. This isn't about personality; it's just how the human brain is designed.
Summary: The Law of Plus and Minus is Not a Word to Be Feared
Akihiro Miwa said, “If you gain, you will surely lose.”
When we look at psychological research, we can see quite specifically what this law was pointing to:
- You will always get used to the joy of gaining (Hedonic Adaptation).
- From the moment you gain, the fear of loss is born with twice the weight (Loss Aversion).
- Things determined by comparison have no end to fulfillment (Positional Goods).
- Things you acquire feel more valuable than they are, making them hard to release (Endowment Effect).
What you can do starting tomorrow:
- On days you achieve a big result, write down one small daily joy.
- Categorize whether what you are currently chasing is a positional or non-positional good.
What to do within a month:
- Consciously increase time spent on foundations that won't shake if lost (health, relationships).
- Choose one thing you feel you “can't let go of” and ask yourself if you would buy it today.
Long-term goals:
- Nurture at least one axis of satisfaction that is not based on comparison with others.
- Design your life to take on challenges even while incorporating the premise that “if you gain, you lose.”
The Law of Plus and Minus is not a phrase to make you fear that “bad things happen when you get happy.”
If you know that gaining always comes with a cost, you can prepare for that cost. If you are prepared, you don't need to fear gaining.
Only those who know about losing can gain with peace of mind.
Finally
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