The Paradox of Choice - What We Can Do (Entry IV)

In my previous blogs, I discussed decision making and its unforeseen repercussions, oftentimes in the form of suffering. Since each choice a person makes could be loaded with regret and pain, it’s important to know how to take the necessary steps to mitigate, or even eliminate, sources of distress. As such, Schwartz provides several new ways of thinking.

Schwartz’s first piece of advice is to choose when to choose, which can significantly help save time. For example, a shopper can make the rule that she will visit no more than two stores when shopping for a pair of shoes (Schwartz 233). While she may have saved a small amount of money if she were to visit one more store, she would feel less emotionally drained when she encounters a limited number of choices. The reason is because she restricted her options and accepted whatever choice she made at the end of the search. Once the chooser makes habitual limitations, the perceived results, or subjective results, naturally become more satisfying.

Another important piece of advice Schwartz gives is for decision makers to think about the opportunity costs of opportunity costs. As mentioned in my previous blog, opportunity costs can detract from the perceived attractiveness of any decision. Thus, it’s important to limit the evaluation of the countless potential alternatives. By setting our own standards for what is “good enough,” there is no need to seek out so many more comparisons and add underserved stress to our lives.

Without a doubt, these methods of alleviating the emotional burdens on decision makers require practice and habitual adjustments. For anyone interested, Barry Schwartz also provides several sets of strategies and routines to help anyone follow his advice in The Paradox of Choice.