life changing

In my earlier post discussing the paradox of choice, I confessed I am a self proclaimed chronic maximzer. For instance, years ago I was frustrated with my can opener. It was difficult to use and often took several trys to fully open a can. When I held it, my hands were uncomfortable. I, of course, went to Amazon to find a replacement. Searching for “can opener” on Amazon yields: 1-48 of over 1,000 results for “can opener” [Read More]

As a child, school provided a well defined schedule. Arrive at 7:30 AM. English class at 8 AM. History class at 9 AM. Math class at 10 AM, and so forth. The schedule provided structure but everything was mandated. You were told when and where to be and what you were studying. Sometimes the subject of the class was uninteresting. But you had to be there. It was an obligation. For subjects I did enjoy, there were times I would lose engagement because the pacing was too slow. [Read More]

Freedom. A core tenet of United States culture. What embodies freedom more than individual choice? Following this logic, more choices = more freedom. Therefore, having more choices is always virtuous, right? The Paradox of Choice Barry Schwartz counters this reasoning in his book The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less. He argues that too much choice can have negative consequences. In particular it can have these effects: Decision Paralysis - We don’t feel confident we’ll make the best choice, so we don’t make any decision at all. [Read More]