One Man’s Opinion: The never-ending choices of the modern world
It used to be so simple when selecting colors of paint. There were not that many different shades of paint in the old days. But now ... WOW! One could drive himself insane trying to select the simplest texture and shade of paint.
The clerk asks, “What type of paint would you like?” Naturally, I respond, “What type do you have?” Then the litany begins: “We have flat, matte, eggshell, semi-gloss, low luster, satin, and high gloss.” Being the ignorant person I can sometimes be, I ask, “What is the difference between eggshell, satin, matte, flat or whatever?” She then proceeds to hold up a piece of wood that is painted with the different choices, to help me differentiate between the textures of the various types. I frankly can’t tell the differences. I scratch my head and think to myself, “they are all so close, so what the hell difference does it make?” So, I choose eggshell, and move on.
Then she asks, “What color would you like?” I say “blue.” That was a big mistake because there were over 60 shades of blue. I should have gone to the store earlier and gotten both the paint type and sample shades, then brought them home and let my wife decide. Oh no, she really didn’t care — “just decide on your own — I trust your judgment.” I thought to myself ... “right!” So, this was my big chance to prove I could deliver the goods without her input. But, oh my God, did there have to be so many shades of blue? It could give a person a migraine trying to decide between Hale Navy blue, Newbury Port blue, Whipple blue, Jamestown blue, Palladian blue, Mill Springs blue, Deep Sea blue, Mountain Sky blue, and the fifty or so other shades of blue. Well, I chose Marlboro Blue. And guess who didn’t like it?
I remember in the early 1970s reading "Future Shock" by Alvin Toffler. In one of the chapters, he outlined the problems we all would have with making choices — not only choices between different products, but choices within the same product. Toffler said that choice would become over choice (too much choice). The choices would bombard us at such a fast pace that if we were not prepared, we could drive ourselves to near insanity. Well, my day arrived at the paint store. The days of Henry Ford saying to his customers, “you can have any color of car you would like, as long as it is BLACK!” have long since passed. I don’t even want to get into the color of cars thing.
I am sure we all have been put into this choice (over choice) situation many more times than we would like. Have you ever done any research on cars? Researching the make, model, price, accessories, mileage, specifications, comparisons, etc., can cause one to go off the deep end. We probably would end up asking some stranger who drives the vehicle we are considering: “How do you like your car?” And we would trust a total stranger’s advice more than any other information that we could solicit from any Internet site. Of course, there is always Consumer Reports. They compare just about anything one could possibly think of, from coffee pots (brewing machines) to the newest advances in commodes. They do such a thorough job that I am more confused after I read the article than before I picked up the magazine.
This same scenario of overchoice happens with any product on the market: televisions, refrigerators, computers, fax machines, video games, snow machines, chainsaws, furniture, movies, TV programming ... choice, choice, and more choice. Somehow, we have been able to handle all these choices — with a little help from Tylenol, Bayer, Anacin, Aleve, Percodan, Ecotrin, Asper gum, Advil, Bufferin, Emprim, et cetera. It gives me a headache just thinking about what to take for a headache.
So, what to do about this whole choice thing? The best piece of advice I have ever heard on this subject came from one of those Early Morning Shows on CBS, ABC, or NBC — I can’t remember which choice I made that morning. There was an expert on this subject discussing how to handle all the choices we make regarding purchasing products. He said don’t drive yourself nuts doing all the research. Just get down to the gut level and ask yourself this simple question: “Is it good enough?” That is, “good enough” for how you intend to use it. Do we really need a Cadillac to drive back and forth to the grocery store or will a Chevy do? Is it “good enough?”
With that, what I have written is “good enough” for me. I’m sure you get the idea. Happy shopping! And if you can’t find anything “good enough,” look under “P” in the Yellow Pages for a psychotherapist, psychologist, psychoanalyst or maybe even a psychic to help you decipher the choices you have made, are making or will have to make. As usual, this is just one man’s opinion.
— Jerry Donnelly is a Petoskey native who was an educator downstate. His column, One Man's Opinion, appears monthly. Donnelly can be contacted via email at jerry.wheepapa.donnelly@gmail.com.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: One Man’s Opinion: The never-ending choices of the modern world
