Are you indecisive? Yes. We all are. But some have it worse than others. I can’t for the life of me pick out what kind of snack I want in the gas station on a long trip. Some people have it so bad it actually keeps them from doing things such as plan a vacation. Normally when faced with an indecisive person I get aggravated with them and offer to make a decision for them so we can move on. But maybe I should give them a break, they know something that you and I don’t.
Let’s break it down with an example.
Joe is planning a special evening for him and his special person and you have the option of spending the night in a fancy hotel or going to a nice dinner. The cost is the same, and he wants to do them equally. He can’t do them both. He is faced with a decision.
It doesn’t matter which he chooses for this example so let’s just go with the nice dinner.
After he makes his decision, the first thing his mind does is actually justify the decision by downplaying the other option. “The hotel had that one bad review, it’s further away, and my special person and I would rather spend the night at home anyway”. This makes his decision more enjoyable and he goes and has a good time. Not only is he feeling like he made the right decision, but his desire to go to the hotel has diminished somewhat.
But after he consumes his choice (the dinner), something changes. His preference for the alternative starts to climb again. The hotel was the foregone alternative. This isn’t buyer’s remorse, as he still very much enjoyed his dinner. It’s just that his utility gained from the dinner did not satisfy the utility that would have been gained from staying at the hotel.
Do indecisive people have better insight to this than others? It’s possible. Now they aren’t thinking in these terms, but maybe they do know when faced with two choices that supposedly provide the same utility, it’s actually two different utilities. If I was trying to plan a trip to Disney World or Las Vegas I’m really looking at two different kinds of pleasure. Going to Disney World isn’t going to make me not want to go to Vegas.
We’re constricted usually by a couple of things. It’s some kind of resource, especially time and money. I can’t afford two trips, or I don’t have time for two. What can we do?
The direct method is to stop thinking so much, make a decision, and live with it. But that isn’t really easy, and only a certain kind of thinking can really make that work. You could downplay the other choice, but once you’ve consumed your first choice the second choice starts to look good again. I can only think of two things that might help. The first is to try to satisfy that other decision in some way. Say Joe picked the hotel, he could still do a dinner. Maybe it’s just the company that really mattered. Or if I picked Disney World, maybe I could find a casino or Vegas style show near-by. I don’t know if this would work or not.
The other idea is to make a choice saying to yourself the next thing you will do is the other choice. Now you might find another choice before your next chance but then you’re simply back to playing the same game. I don’t usually find myself in these situations as when I’m in the gas station I just want chocolate and just about anything would work. But then again, I’m planning a special evening for me and The Sheconomist soon, and I’m faced with a half-dozen equally appealing options. Damn curses.
Photo: Roens
 By The Weakonomist |
The Weakonomist is the founder of Weakonomics. Clicking the picture of the puppy will tell you more about him. If you like what you're reading consider subscribing to the blog, following him on Twitter, and checking out the related posts below. Please consider a donation if you really enjoy Weakonomics. Also keep in mind that nothing I say can be construed as financial advice. |
