More Choices, Less Satisfaction

Yes, it's multi-tasking. Yes, it's too much in and too little out.  Yes, it's work, work, work and no play.  Yes, it's the looming doom.  Yes, it's too much greed and not enough giving.  These things all contribute to our sense of unhappiness, loneliness, malaise, stress and anxiety.  But, I think I've found the problem (with no answer).  We have too many dang choices.  Yes, we live in the land of the free with the God given right to have as much as we want when we want it with everything on it and, while you're at it, could you please super-sized it.  It's nuts, crazy, I say.  No wonder we can't focus.  No wonder it's so easy to slump in the couch and zone out.  We are overloaded. 

I've heard parents ask their 3 year olds:  "What kind of juice would you like: orange, banana-pineapple, apple, cranberry, cranberry-grape?"   The child freezes as the mother impatiently waits for an answer so she can get breakfast on the table.  Remember when 31 Flavors ice cream was, like, WOW.  Now, we not only have a 131 flavors, but they come in non-fat, low-fat, no-sugar, soy, soft-serve, gelato, and sorbet.  The Japanese are adding fish, corn, lobster and noodle to their ice cream choices.  And, bacon ice cream has made an entrance.  It is almost impossible to grab a can of tomatoes without having to discern if it's organic, salted, whole, chopped, with garlic, basil, or italian herbs.  And the chip selections.  The cereal.   

Our opportunities are many, and that's good.  But, with Starbucks offering consumers up to 87,000 drink combinations, Comcast, 1,000 channels and Sirius 140 radio stations, you'd think we'd be more satisfied with the ability to get precisely what we want.  But more choices do not always equate to happier consumers. In fact, some studies show that having to make too many decisions can leave people tired, mentally drained and more dissatisfied with their purchases.  They found that even making pleasant choices can deplete one's mental resources, making a person less able to concentrate later, leading to "decision fatigue". (1)  Want to do yoga?  You'll need to choose between vinyasa (slow, mellow, radiant or bhakti), hatha, power, something-inspired, nude, shadow, restorative, acro or Jivamukti.  Oh, and the levels--beginner, intermediate, advanced, levels I-II, II-III, IV, and "all-levels".  

The poor college student who has to decide "what they're going to be."  Historically, you had few choices on your life path. Men followed in their father's or uncle's footsteps often joining the family business. If a woman, you stayed home, cared for the children, ironed, cooked and cleaned.  If you worked, you were a secretary or nurse.  If college was an opportunity, you became a doctor or lawyer.  Today with the availability of higher education, the pressure to decide can be daunting for young adults.   As research has shown, an excess of choices often leads us to be less, not more, satisfied once we actually decide. There's often that nagging feeling we could have done better. (2)

What's the answer?  I don't know, but I can find 13,600,000 places to look on the internet and 45 books to read on Amazon.  Hum, that glass of wine sounds pretty good right now.  Thankfully, there's only one choice in the fridge.