Post: #1

I have a personality quirk where I struggle at picking between things I like.

For example, if I walk into an ice cream shop, I'll stand there for a while struggling to pick a flavor since I will most likely enjoy all of the ice cream flavors. I would be happy picking between any of them.

Yet, being presented with so much choice is overwhelming. I end up never picking anything in complete indecision!

Normally to just appear decisive i'll pick a safety choice going with the example above I can pick chocolate peanut butter and be perfectly happy with it. But what about the other flavors?

How would you break such a tie when it comes to life decisions? I'm tempted to just leave decisions like this to chance (roll a dice) and stick to it no matter what. How do you approach such decisions?

Post: #2

Mentally pick one. Convince, urge and tell yourself that's the one you'll HAVE TO stay with.

Now, do you feel any regret? Do you want to go back to your other option?

Deep down, you know which one you want more. The only way to know is to actually choose, and feel the state of regret or happiness of the option.

Post: #3

Quote:How would you break such a tie when it comes to life decisions? I'm tempted to just leave decisions like this to chance (roll a dice) and stick to it no matter what. How do you approach such decisions?

For minor stuff like ice cream, route to take to work I'll use doggy, doggy diamond or eeney(spelling) meenie, miney, moe.

For the important stuff, I,

1) Preoccupy myself with other things for a day or two so I don't make rash decision based on emotion.

2) I use something called a Weighted Avg Decision Matrix on helpmydecision.com. I enter the choice and the relevant factors. Assign a pt value to each factor and the machine will calculate for you.

Post: #4

I cribbed my solution from Nassim Taleb's take on Buridian's donkey. If I'm stuck at an impasse, I limit myself to a couple options and then flip a coin.

It's not a perfect system by any means but I've grown to enjoy having a little randomness in my life rather than fretting about whether or not I made the better choice.

Post: #5

How we make our choices by Alan Watts

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7CH9cRN8Rg

Post: #6

Tim Ferris mentioned trivial choices in one of his podcasts. I believe it was part two of his podcast on memory. He basically said that, for decisions which won't impact his long-term life and/or are easily reversible, he will pick one choice with the smallest amount of evaluation possible. The real danger in choosing between ice cream flavors is not the opportunity cost of tasting the other flavor, it is the opportunity cost of the time you spent deciding.

Pick something, run with it, have no regrets.

Post: #7

I choose at random and follow my instincts. Works for me.

With life decisions, I weigh the positives and negatives, consider the optimal choice and go for it. Life's too short to be indecisive.

Post: #8

Relevant

Post: #9

I like the randomising option using a dice or such. The problem with choice in the modern world is not only that there are so many things to choose from, which is actually good, but rather the fact that you start to choose the same thing over and over. Basically the ability to get what you want is detrimental to you in the longer term. Because left to your own devices you'll always choose pretty much "the same damn thing" every time. You get stuck in a rut. And while this may seem comfortable, this behavior is setting you up for collapse on account of lack of variation. Not so much a lack of available choices, but the narrowness of the ones you choose.

I'd also recommend all three of Taleb's books which deal with this in a way. He's a smart guy and has a feel for these sort of dilemma's.