Overcoming analysis paralysis
Get more done by limiting your choices
Take a look at the stray papers on your desk and the emails lingering in your in-box. Each one likely represents a collection of indecisions with a staggering number of options. "What's the right next step" "Where can I put this so I won't lose it?" "When will I get to this?" "Is this worth doing?"
In the face of endless decisions, we often enter a mental state I jokingly call 'analysis paralysis.' But the resulting mental and physical clutter is no laughing matter to most of us.
As one of America’s leading productivity experts Barbara Hemphill has observed, “Clutter is postponed decisions.” And it’s not just physical clutter. Postpone enough decisions and you’ll quickly experience a mental clutter that is invisible but no less exhausting. “Will I have time for that meeting or should I reschedule?” “When will I work on that presentation?” “What should we have for dinner?”
If we want to get rid of mental and physical clutter, we have to decide to decide. Making a quick decision, rather than reading, re-reading, and putting aside, saves time, space, money and energy.
It sounds simple enough, but there’s a small problem; we Americans love having options. Our society of self-determination is built on our freedom to make our own choices about what we want to do, be and buy. More choices mean that we can express exactly who we are. More choices mean that we can pursue our very particular brand of happiness.
But having too many choices isn’t always a good thing. Researchers exploring the link between choice and happiness have found that there’s a point at which too many choices makes us less satisfied and more overwhelmed.
In one study, one group of participants was given a choice of six exotic jams, while another group was given 30 from which to choose. Strikingly, the group with fewer choices expressed greater satisfaction with their choice. Researchers concluded that the more choices we have, the more we experience what marketers call 'decision regret.' This fear of regret can get so great, in fact, that it cancels out the pleasure resulting from the actual choice made.
In his paper, “Self-Determination: The Tyranny of Freedom” Swarthmore Professor Barry Schwartz points out that another reason that too many choices works against us is that “they create a seemingly intractable information problem. It is hard enough to gather the information and go through the deliberations needed to make the best choice among six options. To choose the best among 30 options is truly daunting. Therefore, rather than even try, people may disengage, choosing almost arbitrarily to get the process over with.”
When we have too many choices, it’s hard to make a decision. Not making a decision, a.k.a. analysis paralysis, causes mental and physical clutter. If we want to get rid of our mental and physical clutter, we have to limit the number of choices we have so that we can make faster decisions. When Proctor and Gamble, for example, reduced the number of versions of its Head and Shoulders shampoo from 26 to 15, sales increased by 10%.
One of the classes we teach, called the GO System, offers a technique for processing incoming paper, email, voicemail, verbal requests and things you think of to do. Called “The Five Decisions,” this technique restricts your options, and as a result it becomes easier to make a decision and move on. Pick up a piece of paper lying on your desk and see if it works for you.
- Discard. “Can I throw this away?” If yes, do so. If not, move to the next decision.
- Delegate. “Can I delegate this?” If yes, do so. If not, move to the next decision.
- Take immediate action. “Can I do this in a minute or less?” If yes, do so. If not, move to the next decision.
- File for reference. “Is there no action required but I need to file this for future reference?” If yes, file it. If not, move to the next decision.
- File for follow up. If the paper has made it this far, it has become a task or a project. The final decision then becomes, “When will I do this?” and the paper is filed until it is ready to be worked on.
While it can be fun to have 100 choices in the cereal aisle or a million choices for books on-line, when it comes to getting more done, less is nearly always more.
Want to use this article in your e-newsletter or website? You can use this material in whole or in part, as long as you include this complete attribution and live link: Productivity consultant and trainer Cristin Lind of Clearwater Productivity helps busy professionals enhance their work and enrich their lives. If you’re ready to get more done with less effort, visit www.clearwaterproductivity.com.