My decision-making process

[vinceconaway]

I was making dinner plans recently and fascinated by watching my date make her decisions. I'm often torn by second guessing after the fact, and seeing her weigh and optimize her options was an illuminating contrast.

When I make a choice I'll typically have a set of parameters. With dinner, for example, I'll typically have a budget and perhaps a genre preference. Having set those parameters I will then take the easiest option available. I won't look for 3.5 vs 4.2 stars on Yelp, or try and find the $10 vs $12 meal if my budget is $15. I'll look for close and easy (no left turns onto busy streets, for example).

The benefit to this is that I think very quickly on my feet: having stripped the problem to its bare bones I use laziness to break ties. It also means that I save effort for the things that absolutely require it. The downside is that I don't optimize, so I'm often left wondering if I could have had a better or cheaper meal if I'd kept looking, even if the answer is no.

Comments

[shyska.livejournal.com]

Sounds to me like you've cut out the possibility of anxiety in exchange for potential disappointment in terms of lazy options.

Insightful to read about your thinking process, and your delight in your date's.