The agony of choice

How do I make the right decisions?

Getting up, getting dressed, cooking. Every day brings new tasks and challenges with it. To manage these, we need to make several unconscious decisions daily, and we should always choose as wisely as possible so that we don't look back disappointed afterwards. But what if decision-making freedom becomes decision-making pressure? Is there a way to ultimately make the "right" choice? And does the "right" decision even exist?

Even the most trivial things, like choosing the right outfit or the right radio station, often manage to drive us mad. We desperately search for a solution until our patience runs out and we grab some halfway satisfactory alternative. That may work here, but with big, important decisions we usually put off responsibility until we can no longer avoid it. That is burdensome, and quite so. It is especially the negative consequences that we imagine and fear. Major decisions such as choosing a course of study or the right career thus occupy us sometimes forever. Whilst many resort to the classic coin flip for trivial decisions: you name the two options after the symbols on the coin and flip it. Even before the coin lands, one often hopes for the outcome that appealed to you from the start. Serious questions usually require more than a simple coin flip. For example, to know which course of study you want to choose, you generally have to first ask yourself what you hope for from your own life. What is really important to you and what could a life plan look like. Everyone who finds it difficult to answer this question should take 1-2 days and isolate themselves from all other influences. During this time you often quickly notice what you miss and what passions and interests you have. After that, you should try yourself out and think through new ideas, both rationally and emotionally. Here it is especially important to develop the courage to make a wrong decision. The way you handle mistakes turns out to be essential so as not to fail because of wrong decisions. Afterwards, we regret nothing more than a missed opportunity. Humour and schadenfreude, by the way, are excellent for dealing with mistakes. If you stand still and sit down, you won't fall, but you won't move forward either.
In conclusion, it is advisable to involve your surroundings in the decision-making process. The advice of a close confidant or better yet a specialist should and may well be heeded. The more impressions, the more likely you are to avoid a one-sided view of the subject. But be careful:

It is advisable to weigh how you categorise and use the other opinions for yourself, because ultimately the decision always lies with us. No one can take it from us or make it for us in a fair way. So the rule is: for essential questions, the final decision should lie entirely with you, it is your life and not someone else's. So as not to suffer from the agony of choice, you should give yourself time and space for important decisions, such as choosing a course of study or career, to get to know yourself and discover your passions. That way you can make better use of the variety of options for yourself. But since you can't always make the "right" decision and mistakes are part of life, you should learn to deal with wrong decisions and not dwell on them. Better to have tried a bit too much than to have hastily turned something down, because at least you tried.
Marcel Dinkel

Marcel Dinkel