Choices Upon Choices

I just finished reading The Paradox of Choice  by Barry Schwartz. It was a very interesting read. Funny how the further along you get into your degree, the more enjoyable book assignments become. Anyways, the book's theme was based on choices and how many a consumer will face. It wasn't just about small choices such as comparing gas prices, but  big ones like picking a spouse.

The biggest take away for me was the discussion on finding the key to happiness. It is crazy how comparisons come into play when deciding if you are satisfied with your choice. Did my friend make a better choice? What will another friend think?  Schwartz discusses how everyone falls for the same price concepts, its how humans are programs.

This is the trend of Maximizers- a term used of those  who look at every avenue before making a choice. I found myself being a maximizer when deciding what kind of king mattress I wanted to purchase.  It was Labor Day weekend, claimed to be the best time of year to hit up the mattress stores for sales. I left my fishing trip early to commute back to Bozeman to research were to go and what is considered a good mattress. Store after store my list began to shrink, however, the mattresses all started to feel the same.

After looking at every store in town, I went home empty handed. Then I decided to look at online reviews and see what other people had said. First of all, it was extremely difficult to find the mattresses I tested out online. So find a review was impossible. However, I did find some that were similar enough and went off those reviews. All of them were good reviews, but one did stand out. After reading that review I walked into Mattress King and made the purchase.

After reading this book, I now can analyze how and why I make decisions. I'm sure I'll still succumb to bad decisions and make comparisons, but now I understand why.