The Paralysis of Choice: A Story of Missed Opportunities
impact & cost of tiny decisions
I stared at the “Sold Out” sign on my screen, feeling a twinge of disappointment. It wasn’t a big deal, really, but it made me pause and think.
A few weeks ago, I came across an event in another city. It caught my eye because it lined up with a trip I was considering for my startup work. The event itself wasn’t directly related to my business, but it aligned with my personal interests.
I hesitated to book it, though. Was it worth making the trip? Was I losing focus on my startup by adding extra activities?
I told myself I’d decide later. Classic move. Deferring to the future…
For the next couple of weeks, the event lingered in the back of my mind. I’d open the tab, skim the details, then close it again. Part of me was excited about the possibility, while another part questioned if it was worth the time and energy. The real struggle was overcoming the inertia, making that commitment.
Today, I finally decided to go for it. But as the page loaded, I saw those words: Sold Out. The decision had been made for me, I guess.
As I sat there, I couldn’t help but recognize a pattern. This wasn’t the first time I’d missed out on something because I couldn’t make up my mind in time. It made me wonder: Why is decision-making sometimes so challenging?
Maybe it’s about a scarcity mindset, stemming from perfectionism. When opportunities are readily available, they sometimes seem less valuable. There’s this nagging thought that if something’s worth having, it should be hard to get. But is that always true?
Or maybe it’s an unconscious pattern of waiting for a better thing, a clear signal, or the right set of circumstances. As if there’s a perfect alignment of stars that will make the decision obvious.
It could also be about commitment. Overcoming that initial inertia, especially for something that’s not strictly necessary, can be tough. It’s easier to stay in the comfort zone of indecision.
The reality is, by trying to make the best choice, I sometimes end up making no choice at all. And that’s a choice in itself, isn’t it?
Dang it, I’ve only recently started catching onto this pattern & improving.
It feels like I have a long way to go.
Over the years, I’ve done & still do some practices to help with decision-making. Journaling, making pros and cons lists — they’re helpful tools. But they’re not quite muscle memory yet. I still lose track sometimes and fall back into old patterns.
It’s a work in progress, and I’m still figuring it out. But recognizing the pattern feels like a step in the right direction. The challenge now is to turn this awareness into action, to build those decision-making muscles so they kick in automatically when I’m faced with choices.
Maybe next time an interesting opportunity comes up, I’ll be ready to say yes — or no — without quite so much back-and-forth. Or at the very least, I’ll catch myself in the cycle earlier.
For now, though, I’ll keep working on it. Keep journaling, keep making those pros and cons lists, and most importantly, keep pushing myself to make decisions, even when it’s uncomfortable.
After all, growth often comes from these moments of discomfort and self-awareness.
Who knows? Perhaps the next “Sold Out” sign will be a reminder of a decision made, not an opportunity missed.
