Fewer CHOICES, More HAPPINESS?

 

Fewer CHOICES, MORE HAPPINESS?  I really think so.  We DON'T need to look far away.  Let's relook at our very own selves.  If you step into any of those 7-Eleven, Lawson OR Family Mart convenience stores, do you remember if you spent like half an hour just to buy a specific item?  If I have to bet, one's average total clocktime in the convenience stores will be around 5 to 10 minutes.  Except probably WHEN during our 2-week holiday in Japan WHERE we were awed [and floored, maybe] by the one too many choices of foodies, chocolates and even drinks in most of their branches.  In fact, we always ended up like shopping right then and there.  BUT would you agree, FEWER CHOICES equates to MORE HAPPINESS??? 

In our world WHERE options abound, many assume that more choice equates to more freedom and therefore greater happiness.  Many recent researches increasingly suggests that the opposite may be true.  Fewer choices can actually lead us to a more content and satisfying life.  There's this counterintuitive idea coined by psychologists as the PARADOX OF CHOICE, it was explained that WHEN people are faced with one too many options, we tend to experience greater anxiety that even leads to that so called 'decision fatigue' and eventually regret.  WHILE having some choice is undoubtedly empowering, having too much choice can be mentally exhausting and paralyzing💥💥💥

A lot lab-based studies dissected into that puzzle as to HOW one too many choices can somehow undermine our happiness.  And the conclusion is that WHEN individual are forced to make multiple decisions in a day [LIKE WHAT to wear, WHAT to eat, WHAT to buy], their cognitive resources get depleted.  Ironically, the common conclusion amongst all those studies is that having fewer choices help preserve our mental energy for the decisions that really matter.  Here's some tidbits of information about the late Apples founder Steve Jobs as to WHY he wore the same outfit every day.  NOT out of laziness BUT to minimize trivial decisions and reduce cognitive load.  And another downside of excess choices is our 'post-decision' regret WHEREIN WHEN we have too many choices, we're more likely to imagine that a different choice might have been better.  That 'WHAT IF' mindset erodes our satisfaction.  WHETHER choosing a new smart phone, a car OR even a meal, the more alternatives we consider, the less confident we feel in our decision💚💛💜

Psychologists coined this unique tagging people WHO strive to make the best possible choice as "MAXIMIZERS" as they are easily most prone to this kind of regret and are often less happy overall than "SATISFICERS", WHO are content with a 'good enough' choice.  Simplifying our choices DOESN'T mean giving up our hard-earned freedom to choose.  Rather, it means, being selective about WHERE we devote our decision-making energy.  Practices like spiritual retreats OR minimalist living intentionally reduce our daily choices LIKE WHAT to eat OR do, thus freeing up significant mental space for deeper thought, creativity and even our emotional well-being.  True, small adjustments will go a long way to help.  LIKE if we try going for a 'choice diet', that limits our decision-making in areas of low importance LIKE WHAT to have for lunch OR WHICH brand of toothpaste to buy😡😡😡

Our takeaway:  I always believe in striking that 'right balance' in our decision-making, WITHOUT depriving us OR curtailing our freedom of choices BUT at the same time, WITHOUT pushing us into that involuntary 'analysis-paralysis' dilemma because in today's  hyper-choice culture, happiness may NOT lie in having more options BUT in having just enough and in being confident enough to choose without looking back.  And by simplying our decisions, we can then focus on WHAT truly matters and live more purposefully and achieve that mother of all bottomlines WHICH is HAPPINESS😊😊😊