“What do you want to eat?” is a question that I love and hate. As someone who spends a lot of her downtime scrolling through food Instagrams and watching Insider videos like “The Best Chocolate Chip Cookie in NYC,” this question gives me the opportunity to explore one of the many restaurants on my running list of eateries. But somehow, without fail, this question brings out mind spinning stress. I always quickly volunteer to find a place, and generally I have one restaurant in mind, only needing some validation from photos on Yelp. However, somehow, I always end up having ten different Yelp tabs open and find myself going to Google Maps hoping it will make a decision for me. Even if I go in having chosen one place, I can’t help but wonder, “What if this is better?” Once I go down that path, I can’t seem to stop. There is always a new restaurant popping up on the search, and I end up at square 1 after 30 minutes, with no place and lots of frustration. It’s even worse when you finally choose a place and someone says no for whatever reason. Enter stress ball relievers. 30 minutes of unnecessary work down the drain.

Choice overload, or overchoice, or the paradox of choice, describes the phenomenon of difficult decision making as a result of too many choices. Simply put: when you have a lot of options, it’s really hard to make a decision. Choice is always good- it’s nice to voice your desire and have a say in a decision. Too much of it can be paralyzing. Here are some consequences of choice overload that we have all experienced: decision fatigue (how can trying to find a coffee shop to work at exhaust you so much you can’t do any actual work?!), choosing the default (you’re really going to get vanilla bean ice cream again Alice?), or choice deferral, which is when you avoid making a decision at all. This last one is what I’m interested in, particularly how it applies to my use of free time.

When I’m at school, I always have something I need to do. Whether that’s homework, meetings, classes, or working at my on campus jobs, there is always something to readily occupy my time. During breaks, I initially get so excited at the prospect of free time. Besides the given (hanging out with friends, baking, sleeping, and exploring grocery stores), I can finally pleasure read, update my portfolio, relearn Chinese (and relearn French for that matter), make an app, network, do some DIYs, become more financially literate, start a blog (hahah), and so on. I could go for ages. However, everytime I look back, the majority of my time has been spent watching Youtube videos. I always feel like I’m wasting my time, and even though I have all these great ideas, none of them ever surface and come to life. As much as I enjoy watching David Dobrik vlogs or Queer Eye interviews, they begin to add minimal value to my life after a while. It’s not as fun when I do it for weeks.

I’ve been listening to Freakonomics, a really interesting podcast, on my commute to and from work as a way to build small habits that keep my mind engaged. That’s where I heard choice overload, and I was slightly bummed at how dominant it was in my life. When I come home from work, I usually have a solid four hours of time where I could theoretically relearn Chinese or learn Swift. Of course there are a variety of reasons why it’s hard to start a project, but having way too many options has definitely been a factor. So many things I could do and yet I never do any of them. It’s exciting but overwhelming and paralyzing and demotivating. How can I overcome choice overload and make decisions that are in our best interest?

I need to simplify my choices- cut down on them! Filter out a lot of options through prioritization. Gather my constraints like time, energy, skill level, and goals and prioritize with those in mind. When I was choosing a coffee shop to work yesterday, before even looking for a place, I laid out some requirements. I was meeting a friend in downtown, so I needed to be close by. I had two hours to work and needed Wifi, a bathroom, and a seat. The place also needed oat milk and matcha, you know, the non negotiables. Good products will help you narrow down that choice. Google Maps and Yelp, for example, are becoming more aware of choice overload and have ways to limit your options. I chose the Village Den and the matcha wasn’t great and the Wifi was crap. So… we can’t always succeed, but noted for next time!

My goal this summer was to stay connected with my friends, do more active reflection, and to feel accomplished. I wanted to get something out there. So if everyone could join me in celebrating my first post, that would be great!

Something that’s scary with choice is the feeling of giving up something by choosing something else. Opportunity cost is one of the first things we are taught in Economics. Resources like time are scarce and you need to allocate them well. But in decisions like food and free time, we’re not really giving up something. Just because I start a blog doesn’t mean I won’t learn more about Roth IRAs and investing later on. I’m trying to not let the fear of what I am “losing” (but not really) stop me from gaining something. The days of Youtube binges are over. At the end of the day, you just have to choose something, you know? Most people regret inaction rather than action. And no one likes regret :)