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Dear Friends and Clients,

At a busy time in my career, we decided to gut our 1950s kitchen and start over. Early in the process, I arranged lunch with Gail, a friend who had recently completed a beautiful kitchen renovation. She arrived with the results of a year’s worth of research – a notebook bulging with information about appliances and cabinetry.

As Gail spoke enthusiastically about how the premier brands varied from appliance to appliance, I could feel my excitement about the new kitchen shift to anxiety about the time-consuming process of making all those choices.

Then inspiration hit. Instead of accepting the loan of Gail’s notebook, I borrowed her expertise and left lunch with a list of the brands and styles that she had selected for her kitchen. When we took that list to the kitchen supplier, we had to make only a few choices about size and color, and the project felt like fun again.

Americans tend to equate an abundance of choices with happiness. But sometimes having too many choices makes us feel anxious and unproductive, and that is what I’ll write about in this issue.

Warmly, Bev

Sometimes Fewer Options
May Reduce Stress and
Yield a Better Result

June 5th, 2007 * Number 61

In the workplace, as in many other parts of life, it can be extremely stressful to have little freedom of choice. To do our best work, we need some scope for creativity.

But does that mean that a wider range of choice is always better? Research suggests that in many cases the answer is “no.” Our level of satisfaction, and the pace of our achievement, may actually be reduced as our choices proliferate.

In his book, “The Paradox of Choice”, psychologist Barry Schwartz reports on findings that people can become overwhelmed by a complexity of choice. He writes, for example, that:

As the number of available retirement plans increases, the chances that employees will select a plan actually declines;

As the number of students' optional assignments increases, the likelihood that they will write on any of the topics declines, and the quality of work produced by those who do write decreases as well; and

When some job seekers are offered an increasing list of possibilities, they become more stressed and anxious, and less satisfied with the available options.

When faced with too many choices, it seems that we may suffer from overload. One reason is that increased choice can translate into a heavy responsibility to sift data needed for making the best decision.

And sometimes when we have too many options, we may start to question our decisions even before we make them. Studies suggest that numerous options may translate into regret about those that must be declined.

In our complicated society and hectic work environments, we may start the path to less stress and greater creativity by finding ways to narrow our choices. If you are thinking about managing your choices in order to create greater calm or clarity, consider these strategies:

Ask an expert. The smartest way to decide may be to accept advice from somebody with more expertise. If you want to stay involved in the decision-making process, ask the expert to recommend the two or three best options. If a group must make a decision, sometimes it is best to determine who is most knowledgeable about the topic, then go with the expert's recommendation.

Delegate the decision. Some choices just aren't worth your time and energy, even if you are the expert. Look for situations where you can let somebody else decide, and give up the need to control the decision.

Know what's good enough. If a decision is vital, we want to make the best choice possible. But often the choice needn't be perfect – we simply must choose an option that is good enough to get the job done. Be clear about what you are trying to achieve, identify a satisfactory option, select it, and then move on.

Set a time limit. Sometimes we agonize or bicker over decisions that aren't important. One way to move past the angst is to set a time limit for yourself or your group and just make a decision, even if you have to toss a coin.

Develop routines & rituals. When your schedule is frantically busy, comfortable traditions and predictable events can provide support and ease the tension. Consider establishing regular lunch or dinner dates, or designating specific days of the week or month for completing certain tasks.

Limit the possibilities. You can ease the burden of choosing by making advance decisions about when and how to decide and which options are available for selection. For example, it will be easier to move forward in a crisis if you already have in place operating parameters or an action checklist. Researchers have described this as “making second-order decisions.” Consider these approaches:

Set a rule. You can short circuit the decision-making process by electing to follow a rule. If, for example, you follow a rule of opening the office at nine o'clock, you will never have to struggle with a decision about when to open the doors.

Adopt a default mode. Select a standard option, and choose to go with it unless there is a good reason not to. For example, if you typically limit a category of spending to $100 per week, stick to that budget unless there is some extraordinary reason why it won't work. You can minimize hassles and uncertainly by sticking with routines and policies that work.

Establish standards. If you are clear about your values, you can bypass some difficult decisions. If, for example, your sense of integrity does not allow you to tell lies, you can bypass choices that would require dishonesty. Standards can help you make small decisions as well, and provide guideposts for everything from ordering supplies to answering the phone.

Want to Read More About
Making Choices?

Below is a brief description of a book, as well as a link that will allow you to buy the book directly from Amazon.com. For reviews of other helpful books, along with Amazon links go to: ClearWays Books and Services. If you buy any book through this link to Amazon it will contribute to the cost of distributing Bev’s Tips, and be much appreciated.

The Paradox of Choice – Why More Is Less, by Barry Schwartz, 2004.

Schwartz writes about the proliferation of choice in our society, and goes on to explain why too much of a good thing is detrimental to our psychological and emotional well being.

He says that there are two ways to go about making a decision:

You can be a “satisfier,” and keep looking until you find a choice that is good enough to meet your goal; or
You can be a “maximizer,” who will keep looking for the best choice until all possible options have been exhausted.

It may be that, examined objectively, maximizers make better choices because they take longer and consider more information. But Schwartz say that maximizers tend to be less happy with their decisions than satisfiers. They tend to agonize and second-guess their own choices, and worry about what they might be missing.

Furthermore, people who tend to be maximizers in making decisions tend to be less happy and more pessimistic in the rest of their lives. Schwartz suggests that maximizers might become happier if they can spot occasions when a choice is “good enough” and perfection is unnecessary.

Click here to buy this book.

Are you looking for a coach or speaker? Bev does one-on-one executive coaching in person or by phone, and she is available to speak about a broad range of issues related to your work life. Visit her website at www.ClearWaysConsulting.com or email to Bev directly. Bev is associated with Executive Coaching & Consulting Associates.

Bev’s Tips for a Better Work Life is published on the first and third Tuesday of each month by Beverly E. Jones of ClearWays Consulting, LLC. Bev is a lawyer and former executive who now coaches accomplished CEO's, public afffairs executives, and other professionals to bring new direction, energy and enjoyment to their work lives.

All rights in all media reserved. However, the content of Bev’s Tips for a Better Work Life may be forwarded in full without special permission on the condition that (1) it is for non-profit use and (2) full attribution and copyright notice are given. For other uses please contact Bev Jones.

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