simplifying choice overload

It’s late Wednesday afternoon and I’m wearing my Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco hat in my cube. 

I know.  It’s a little sad that I work in a cube.  You may also think it’s sad that I possess (and love and often wear) an FRBSF hat but you’re totally wrong. You haven’t seen the hat.

ANYWAY-  I’ve been thinking a lot about choice overload.  There was a Christian Science Monitor article about it recently and I’ve had a copy of the Odyssey Years on my bulletin board for months.  It’s a subject that comes up often when I chat with friends and while I don’t know as we suffer from constant “low-grade dissatisfaction”, the notion that we could, and should, be doing something bigger and better definitely hovers in our collective consciousness.  We end up stressing a lot over our choices.  We’re what Barry Schwartz would call “maximizers” and in this age of almost limitless choice – that can be tough.

My friend Laura deals with her choice overload issues in a really innovative way.  Today I thought I’d give her approach a try and so had the following brief exchange with the online magic 8 ball:

Will law school prove a good idea?

Cannot predict now

Lame.  OK- will my remaining time at work feel like an eternity?

My sources say no

Are your sources reliable?

NO!

Jesus.  Wow, relax.

I don’t think so.

Let's talk about something less stressful- is this hat awesome?

Concentrate and ask again.

Are you serious?

You may rely on it.

Fine.  Is my bright, white, Federal Reserve Bank hat super-awesome?

It is decidedly so.