In Western culture, it’s widely believed that having many choices equals freedom, and that the more options we have, the better decisions we can make. However, research shows the opposite is true. The more choices available, the more likely we are to experience choice paralysis and make poor judgments.
Choice paralysis occurs when, overwhelmed by many options, we become stuck in the details of each, leading to either dissatisfaction with our decision or giving up and not choosing any alternative.
Here’s how to prevent choice paralysis from stopping you from making great decisions.
Limit Your Options
Research has shown that having more options can lead to poorer decisions. This seems counter-intuitive; however, your brain becomes overwhelmed when you compare many similar pieces of information. Instead of finding the option that best suits your needs, you may become confused about what you actually want. Or, in many cases, what the right decision is. This causes choice paralysis, which weakens your good judgment.
To prevent choice paralysis, you should reduce the number of options you consider. Here’s how:
- When making decisions that involve researching options or gathering feedback, limit the amount of information you collect. For example, decide to examine only a specific number of options (say 3-5), consult a set number of people, or cease data collection after spending a designated amount of time.
- Provide information from a limited number of credible sources. When possible, focus your search on pre-vetted sources like industry-leading websites, review sites, and referrals.
- Cut down on the number of criteria you consider. A main reason people make worse decisions when they have more options is that they get overwhelmed by comparing every small detail and forget to focus on the most important criteria. To avoid this, identify your must-have criteria and only focus on those during your decision-making.
- Stop searching once you’ve found a solution that meets your needs. If you’re paying attention to details, there are no perfect solutions, and searching for them wastes time, adds confusion, and will leave you disappointed when you run out of time to make a decision.
Remember, choosing from a limited quantity of high-quality options will yield much better results than evaluating an abundance of mediocre ones.
When possible, run a free trial, test campaign, or limited-budget test. It's easier to permit yourself to try something than to commit to it fully.
Read More: How to Stay Laser Focused on Your Goals
Deliberate Under Deadlines
One of the most damaging effects of choice paralysis is the tendency to waste hours—if not days—comparing details that don’t significantly impact your decision’s outcome.
To prevent this, establish deadlines for decision-making. Adjust your timeline flexibly depending on the decision’s significance and the number of stakeholders involved.
For example, if you’re considering adopting a new CRM for your company, it’s a major financial commitment that will significantly affect your sales and marketing teams. For such decisions, setting a deadline of four to six weeks can help you gather your team’s feedback and carefully evaluate each solution’s features.
For decisions of mid to low importance, like choosing a team lunch spot or handling short-term conflicts, allocate no more than thirty to sixty minutes to discuss. To consistently meet your deadlines, avoid adding more options to your list until you’ve confirmed that none of your initial choices fit your needs.
Think About Categories, Not Details
A key cause of choice paralysis is getting too in the weeds—focusing too much on the details. Tiny differences distract us from the bigger features that truly separate one option from another.
While helping companies like Pepsi and Campbell’s Soup develop new products, psychophysicist and market researcher Howard Moskowitz discovered that people find it hard to distinguish exactly what they want on a detailed level. Instead, most prefer one or two variations of a product and are generally satisfied with all options within their ideal category.
For example, he helped Prego understand that consumers prefer tomato sauce that is spicy, plain, or extra chunky, while showing less interest in other flavors. Prego applied this insight to adjust their recipes to match these profiles. Although many flavor options exist, consumers tend to stick to their preferred category when making purchases.
To prevent choice paralysis, organize your desired outcomes from major decisions into no more than five categories that cover your overall needs and wants.
For example, let’s say you’re trying to decide which new product idea you want to produce and release. Instead of breaking down all the details of each idea, focus on key issues such as:
- Production costs
- Competition/market viability
- Scalability
- Time to launch
Comparing ideas based on key categories rather than specific details saves time and allows you to make decisions based solely on the most critical factors.
Read more: How to Foster Focus and Loyalty During Organizational Change
Take Breaks from the Decision-Making Process
Studies show that one of the most effective ways to make difficult decisions is to stop overthinking them. Once you reach the point of choice paralysis, you’ve lost your sound judgment, making it counterproductive to keep focusing on the issue.
Taking a break enables your subconscious to process the information you’ve gathered, helping you see connections that your conscious mind might miss. After stepping away, you’ll often gain new insights that strengthen your reasoning. If you’ve already done the groundwork and are only struggling with the final decision, a short walk or switching to another task for an hour can often bring the clarity needed to make your choice.
However, if you’re stressed and don’t know what to do, sleeping on it for a day or two will give your subconscious time to thoroughly evaluate what’s best and enable you to make a faster decision when you resume working on it.
Using these decision-making strategies will help you avoid choice paralysis and make the most rational decisions in the least time.