It is great that in today’s world we are given so many choices no matter what we are considering – everything from schools, computers, clothes, etc.. Choice can be amazing and a way for us to express our own individuality. Choice can also overwhelm us though and even at times paralyze us.
The Upside of Choice
Having options can be a great thing. We all have different needs and priorities and having a wide variety of options is fantastic. It allows us to customize our products and services to our specific needs; it allows us to literally pay for what we want.
But lets face it, choices can be overwhelming. By using modern technology though in many cases we can take an overwhelming task and convert it into a very manageable decision. For example, just recently I was looking for a new computer. By using the store’s filtering system on their website, I was able to filter down to what matters the most to me in a computer. By the time I had added in all my must-have filters, my choice essentially was made for me. Presto!
The Downside of Choice
On the flip side, choice can be overwhelming. And becoming overwhelmed can be paralyzing at times. While the above example has built-in options for helping us make our decision, not every decision in life is so easy.
For example, selecting what school to go to takes manual research. There is, that I know of, not any system that provides the features of each school and allows you to narrow them down like they do for computers. For many of us, we approach this endeavor with glee and excitement. For others of us, understandably, this type of task can be overwhelming.
My best advice in these situations is to break the task down into parts. For example, when researching schools, it often helps to make a list of everything that is important to you as a first step. Then, make a list of schools that have potential to be the school for you. From there, one at a time take time to research each school individually and discover whether they fit what you have determined to be important to you. Once you have a narrowed down list, it became so much easier to make a choice. This step-by-step strategy can be applied to just about any “manual” decision you have to make.
How do you Make Decisions?
What do you do when you have so many choices? What strategies do you employ for making a decision? Do too many choices overwhelm you? If so, how do you proceed?
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13 July 2020
This is a great post, and I think it’s a really good time to be talking about the power of choice. When I have many decisions on the table, I usually think about them from a risk-reward standpoint.
I love that Isabelle – looking at it from a risk/reward standpoint is a great strategy!
Good read. Making a choice is not an easy task. But we just have to brave with the choices we make.
Exactly Fadima – bravery and courage definitely come into play at times.
This is a really interesting post. Its great that we have so many choice compared to people in the past but sometimes, if the decision is too difficult, I sometimes wish someone would make the choice for me. I always try to ask other peoples opinions before making my choice in these situations because people look at things differently, and might point out something I hadn’t thought about.
I do that too Kelly – sometimes someone has a perspective I hadn’t even thought of that changes my initial decision.
I try to weigh my options as best I can, but I usually just end up going with my gut, or I will overanalyze things forever. Great post!
Thanks Jennifer – sometimes going with the gut is the best option! It’s amazing how smart that gut is 🙂
This was such a great post because everyone always speaks about how amazing having many choices is but no one speaks about how overwhelming it is and how sometimes it’s so hard to find your own way when you have too many options.
So true Nons, Sometimes having too many choices can be paralyzing.
I’m the most indecisive person, I definitely need to work on some sort of strategy! I always think the more options there are, the better but you’re so right that too much choice can be overwhelming, a very interesting point. Becca x
Thank you Becca – yes, it can get overwhelming very quickly, can’t it?
I agree, having choices is amazing, especially if you have certain criteria that you want from a product/ service. But it can also be very overwhelming if you’re not certain what you want x
Sophie
Completely agree Sophie!
This is such a great and thought provoking post. I always have such a hard time making decisions. I am very indecisive lol
I’m glad you enjoyed the article Charity! 🙂
Really interesting post. There’s so much that goes into our decisions!
Thank you Jenny – there really is, isn’t there. External and internal factors.
I am really bad at making decisions but I have got better as I tend to write every thing down like you say and see all the positives and negatives. Though I can sometimes over analyse everything!
I totally hear you Chris – I tend to overanalyze things too at times.
I try to make a list of pros and cons when it comes to the bigger decisions, everything is always easy for me when I see it written out! Great post.
Anika | chaptersofmay.com
I”m a notepad person myself – there’s something about seeing it all in writing that helps
Sometimes, I think about how easy it would be if everything was just decided for me. But then, life would be so boring. Or I’d be doing a bunch of things I didn’t want to do. To help me make decisions, I usually make pros and cons lists, think through potential results of each decision, or talk to others about my thoughts for each choice.
The Book View | thebookview.com
It sounds like you have a great process in place 🙂
A really interesting post. I’m pro-choice in every facet of life and believe that we individually have the right to determine our futures, especially when it comes to making decisions around employment etc.
Kate | thelittlecrunch.co.uk
I agree as well Kate! I like to have the choice in my hands rather than being made for me.
A lot of options is always better than a few. In making decisions, I do a lot of research and let it sit on my mind for as possible to gauge how I really feel about them!
Sounds like a great process Miragail!