Gift Giving Guy

I’m half way through reading Barry Schwartz’s The Paradox of Choice: Why Less is More (Google Book version | Amazon.com entry). His central tenet: while some choice is good, more choice does not lead to more freedom. In fact, more choice can actually paralyze us and lead us to be less satisfied with the choices we make. Why? Because with so many options, we can second-guess ourselves. Should I have bought that “good enough” gift or should I have kept searching for the best gift?

Gift seekers who insist finding on the absolute best are known as maximizers. All options must be pursued to know the absolute best purchase decision was made. Of course, no one can explore all the options, but maximizers aspire to do so.

Schwartz would argue for giving the “good enough” gift. This strategy is known as satisficing — a blend of the words “satisfy” and “suffice.” Satisficers set realistic standards, and when a gift meets the criteria, a choice is made. The gift search is over. Satisficers do not fret over a better gift or a lower price.

The key difference between satisficers and maximizers is the satisficer is content with the merely excellent, not the absolute best. Maximizers are often successful and high achieving, Schwartz says, but they also tend to be less optimistic, less satisfied and less happy than satisficers.

Are you a maximizer or satisficer?
Take this quiz.

My quiz result:
You are a maximizer. You always aim to make the best possible choice. And your choices are objectively better than the choices made by satisficers — but watch out you don’t take it to extremes.