I love the concept of Type I and II fun. If you aren’t familiar, Type I fun is something you enjoy while you’re doing it, like playing a video game. Type II fun is often grueling or arduous while you’re doing it, but you remember it very fondly and greatly enjoy having done it, like climbing a mountain.
This concept made me think about the same model, but for negative emotions. Type I & II pain, let’s call it. Type I pain hurts while it’s happening. Type II pain might be fun while it’s happening, but agonizing later, like drinking into a hangover.
It can be very hard to acknowledge and protect ourselves from Type II pain, even though it can devastate us. But when something hurts, look to the source – and as hard as it might be, you need to remove that source quickly.
The Opportunity Machine 