Calgary Psychologist Insights : Why Too Many Choices Cause Anxiety
The Paradox of Choice: Why Having Too Many Options Makes Us Miserable
Ever open Netflix and scroll for 20 minutes, only to give up and rewatch The Office again?
Or stand in the cereal aisle and think, Why is this so stressful?
Welcome to the Paradox of Choice — the psychological truth that while options promise freedom, too many of them leave us anxious, indecisive, and oddly unsatisfied.
The Science (and the Sanity Behind It)
Psychologist Barry Schwartz popularized the term The Paradox of Choice to describe a simple pattern:
When choice increases, happiness should go up — but after a point, it plummets.
In his studies, shoppers given 24 types of jam sampled more but bought less than those offered only six.
Too much variety overloaded their decision systems.
In psychology, this happens because choice demands cognitive load — we weigh, predict, and imagine multiple futures. The more options we have, the heavier that mental processing gets.
And even after choosing, we’re haunted by what if.
A Story From the Real World
When I first started designing digital products, I assumed people wanted freedom: a dashboard full of features, endless customization, every possible toggle.
Then I watched users freeze.
They’d open the app, tap twice, and leave.
Apple understood this decades ago — minimal buttons, limited decisions, intuitive flow. Every choice removed was one less moment of friction.
Psychologically, simplicity feels safe. It reduces uncertainty. It frees the mind to focus on what matters — not on managing the menu.
A Metaphor You’ll Remember
Imagine life as a restaurant with an infinite menu.
At first, it feels exciting — until you realize you can’t possibly taste it all.
You spend your meal worrying you ordered wrong.
Fewer dishes don’t limit your joy — they protect it.
They allow you to actually taste what you chose.
The Hidden Cost of “More”
More options mean:
- Decision fatigue — the brain’s energy drains with each micro-choice.
- Analysis paralysis — fear of missing the “perfect” option halts action.
- Post-decision regret — we imagine the roads not taken and lose satisfaction with what we picked.
When “freedom” turns into friction, our nervous system translates it as stress.
How to Hack the Paradox of Choice
1️ Limit Deliberation Windows.
Set a rule: small decisions get 60 seconds, medium ones get an hour, major ones a day.
Beyond that, you’re not choosing — you’re ruminating.
2️ Choose Once, Automate Often.
The fewer daily choices you make, the more energy you keep.
Create routines: same breakfast, same work playlist, same structure.
It’s why Steve Jobs wore the same outfit — fewer trivial decisions, more creative bandwidth.
3️ Satisfy, Don’t Maximize.
A satisfier asks, “Is this good enough?” and moves on.
A maximizer asks, “Is this the best possible option?” — and stays stuck.
Research shows satisfiers are consistently happier.
4️ Design Your Life Like a UX Flow.
Think like a product designer: what steps cause cognitive drag?
Where can you simplify navigation?
Fewer clicks, cleaner decisions, calmer mind.
5️ Accept That Regret Is the Price of Agency.
Every “yes” means a thousand “no’s.”
That’s not failure — that’s focus.
Why This Matters
We live in a world that sells choice as happiness, but freedom isn’t about having everything — it’s about knowing what to ignore.
Your mental energy is finite.
Clarity is the new luxury.
When you remove the noise, your attention deepens.
When you simplify, your satisfaction multiplies.
And when you stop chasing “the best,” you start living what’s enough.
Try This Today
Pick one area of your life to declutter — digital, emotional, or physical.
Unsubscribe from five things. Delete unused apps. Say no once.
Notice how much lighter your brain feels.
Because sometimes less isn’t deprivation — it’s design.
Book a consultation today: Calendly