Having a lot of options can be exciting, but it can also be overwhelming. Conversely, having fewer options can lead to greater clarity and can help you to make better decisions. So now we are in a dilemma, what is good, more choices or fewer choices? This itself is a difficult choice, even when I have just two choices!
It is a
generational thing
I am of the opinion that this multiplicity of choices is a
generational thing. When we were in school even our examination papers did not
have multiple choice questions. We had to write long answers to the all the
questions that were asked, and it was our lucky day if we could choose any 5
out of 6 questions! But, you know what, while the depth of knowledge of those
few chapters was thoroughly tested, the awareness of the wide expanse of the
subject remained untested. So, there was a bit of luck involved and one could
pass even without knowing the subject inside out. To address this anomaly came
the multiple choice questions and digitization of examinations followed. Now a
large number of questions from all the chapters could be packed in one question
paper, and there was no way to miss any chapter. Is this good all the way?
Unfortunately, not everyone is pleased and critics say that the knowledge of
today is thinly spread all over the subject and an in-depth knowledge is not
required, and hence missing.
Another generational difference that we observe in India is
choosing a career. In the good old days you could either be a doctor, or an
engineer or an I.A.S officer or choose a career in the Armed Forces. If you
were not in any of them then you were surely not good enough. Today, career
choices and options are galore! From a businessman to an architect, a
journalist, an author, a real estate agent, a lawyer, an event manager, a
travel agent, a departmental store owner, a podiatrist, a beautician, a chef, a
perfumer, an entertainer, a hotelier……you can be anything! You just have to be
good at what you do, and the world will be at your feet. Spoiled for career
choices, the academic crème-de-la crème today does not even think about
becoming doctors and engineers.
Low stake
decisions vs. high stake decisions
There are decisions in life that are high stake – whom to choose as
a life partner, where to send the children for schooling, how to counsel them
to choose a career, which doctor to choose for your diabetes. I have no doubt
that we should spend time on these issues and explore as many options as
possible. These are important decisions, and will result in lifelong tangible
consequences. Digitization has helped us by expanding our choices in almost
every sphere, whether it is by Shadi.com, Career360, Yatra.com or Naukri.com
But it is the low stake decisions in life that the multiplicity of
choice unnecessarily confuses us. Thus, which programme to watch on OTT, from
where to order tonight’s dinner, from where to buy clothes for Durga Puja are
decisions that take too much of our time. And if there are two people trying to
make these decisions, you can imagine how sparks can fly as discussion heat up!
We take hours to go through what all is on offer, discuss the pros and cons of
each option, add to this our previous experiences with each of these choices, then
make our choice list. But, we are not done yet; we replace item 1 and 3 from
the list, then replace 4 and bring back 1, and now we have a whole new order
and a final decision. Are we all happy now, far from it; we instantly criticize
our choice – too adventurous, too mundane, could have been better, yet another
missed opportunity!
Honestly, are these decisions worth our time? These are very low stake
decisions – one dinner, tomorrow we can have a better one, one dress, we can
always purchase a better one, one television programme, we can always change
the channel!
Why do we fuss
so much over low stake decisions?
We do so because we subconsciously believe that one choice is
better than the other. We assign a hierarchy to the available choices, and in
which order we put these choices depend on who we are, how we are feeling. Now,
because we believe that wherever there is a choice it is between good, better
and best, it becomes our responsibility to choose the best. Yes, there are
ratings and stars to guide us which choice is better, but if we are feeling
adventurous we will opt for something yet undiscovered by us, no matter what
the rating is. Conversely, after an exhaustive search we can go back to our
familiar and trusted choice if we don’t want unexpected disappointments. So,
low stake decisions are most authentic reflection of who we are and who we wish
to be. If the dinner I ordered is not appreciated then the only thing that is
hurt is my image of being a sensible guy. And, in an increasingly self centered
and self absorbed world nothing is more unbearable than the idea of failing in
my own expectations.
From physical
to digital
Once upon a time you had to go from shop to shop to search for the
trendiest, the cheapest and the best. In the digital world every option is just
a finger tap away. The touch screen of our phone is hungrily awaiting the
slightest signal from our side to leap into action and unfold a world of
choices. Not only buying food, clothes and home appliances, it is helping us to
choose a flat to live, a vehicle to drive, a mutual fund to invest, a book to
read, a holiday to enjoy all by just a few taps on the phone screen. And more
the choices, the more is our awareness for the alternatives and more is our
responsibility to be correct every time.
Is more choice
better for business?
This question has been answered by a study performed by Columbia Business professor Sheena Iyengar, widely
known as the expert on choice, and her collaborators when she was still a
graduate student at Stanford University.
There was a grocery store nearby that sold 348 different kinds of
jellies and jams. The experimenters set up a tasting booth to let people try
different jams. Supermarkets often use this free sample method to encourage
people to buy their products. Half of the time, the experimenters set out 24
different jams. Half of the time, the booth only had six jams available to
try.
Many more people stopped to try the jam when there were 24 choices,
and they obviously stayed at the booth longer, but when there were only six
jams offered, the customers were far more likely to actually buy jam. With the
24-jam display, about three percent of visitors purchased jam. With the six-jam
display, 30 percent of customers made a purchase.
This study demonstrates that when given fewer options, people are
more likely to follow through with a decision. This is why fine-dining
restaurants and high-end clothing stores tend to present customers with fewer
choices. Therefore, when making a difficult decision, you’ll make the process
easier on yourself if you start with fewer options. A large number of options
results in a ‘choice fatigue’, as you must have experienced while choosing a
television programme from the innumerable number of channels! After all, who
has ever read the page 10 of a Google search?
Dealing with
bad choices
Engaging in mental
time travel into the future, that is, imagining how your
decision will impact your future self, carries positive impacts, making you
less likely to engage in self-destructive behavior. On the other hand, mental
time traveling backward to previous decisions can have negative consequences. If
you want to be happier with the decisions
you make, then you should make them firmly and stick with them. When two
choices seem to involve the same amount of risks and benefits, or positives and
negatives, then greater satisfaction can be obtained by committing to one
selection and never looking back. Surely another way to improve your reasoning
about different choices is to start with fewer choices.
We have a strong desire to maximize our options in life but our
choices should not exhaust us. At a first glance trim down your choices to
a manageable list, much like choosing ‘favourite’ list in your television. You’ll
likely feel uneasy as you do this. Just think of the hundreds or thousands of
options that you’re dismissing without careful consideration.
The results that you are receiving in the different areas of your
life will be the accumulation of the day to day choices that you are making in
those areas. If you are not achieving the results that you want in particular
areas reflect on your past and current choices and ask yourself “Am I making
the right choices and do I need to commit to making some different
choices?”
Time is precious and you need make sure that you are spending it wisely. Spend
time doing things that you enjoy, that make you happy, that contribute to
helping you achieve what you want in life and that assist you in maintaining
your wellbeing. Choices regarding these issues deserve your time. Trivial
issues however, are perhaps best short-listed so that we do not suffer a choice
exhaustion.
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