Tutor: Return on Hassle
The tassel is worth the hassle
Have you ever tried to apply concepts from fields far outside education to the work you do as a tutor? Welcome to the club. Synthesizing interdisciplinary insights sparks creativity, deepens understanding, and expands perspectives. Plus, it’s a lot of fun.
So, if you also enjoy looking at your work through curious lenses, join me in trying to unpack the financial concept of return on hassle, first teased in a tweet by CPA Mitchell Baldridge:
Alas, I’m abstaining as much as possible from Elon-era Twitter, so I can’t follow the story there. Luckily, writer and wealth manager Nick Maggiulli embarked on a much deeper dive into ROH:
“Return on hassle is the idea that you need to consider the time and work associated with an investment in addition to its expected return. In the case of real estate investors, you have to factor in the mental and physical work associated with finding tenants, maintaining your properties, and taking on debt, among other things. These are all “hassles” that most traditional investments (i.e. stocks, bonds, etc.) don’t require.
“But, I believe that these hassles generate higher returns in expectation. Otherwise, why would people spend so much time and effort investing in real estate in the first place?”
Obviously, you'll want to follow Maggiulli’s work if you’re interested in talking about real estate investing. I’m more curious about the implications of return on hassle on learning.
ROH 101
The investment is money and time.
The hassle is effort and more time.
Students that invest in hassle earn a greater return on their investments, right?
ROH 201
Hassle appears, at least superficially, to represent a combination of active management, potential risk, and delayed gratification. Maggiulli illustrates this dimension of hassle in his Return on Hassle Spectrum, which shows the “difficulty/hassle of an investment compared to its expected annualized return.”
So low risk investments of money alone into Treasury bills, bonds, or index/managed funds may yield gains, but the potential of those investments pales against higher-hassle vehicles like active management, real estate, or entrepreneurship (he got the hassle right on that last one, right?)
Low-hassle investments into learning may include going to school, studying premade flashcards, reading when assigned, and cramming for tests.
High-hassle investments into learning may include participating in class, reading outside of schoolwork, writing effective notes, and committing to sustained, deliberate practice.
ADVANCED ROH STUDIES
How can tutors paint a compelling picture of when and why the hassle is worth it?
How can tutors pursue higher-hassle investments into themselves and their practices?
(If it’s not too much hassle, share your thoughts about how to apply ROH to learning!)
Tips, Tools, And Thoughts
Peak-End Theory
Make sure your students end on a high note!
Beware the Man Who Brings a Graph to Show What a Statistic Reveals More Precisely
Graphs purporting to support the SAT as a wealth test can be very misleading.
My Learnings & Mistakes as an Online Course Creator
Even offline tutors can learn from the thoughtfulness this educator put into his iteration process.
How Podcasting Is Changing Teaching and Research
Can podcasts change tutoring?
How a social emotional learning book club can cut across cliques and connect kids
Book clubs in educational settings can be powerful.
…And what amazing product sponsored this week's newsletter?
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