?Absorbing witty and persuasive.??BusinessWeek Top 10 Business Books of 2004 ?Brilliant. . .
. The case Schwartz makes for a correlation between our emotional state and what he calls the
'tyranny of choice' is compelling the implications disturbing. . . . An insightful
book.??Christian Science Monitor ?A revolutionary and beautifully reasoned book about the
promiscuous amount of choice that renders the consumer helpless. A must-read.??Martin Seligman
author of Authentic Happiness Whether we're buying a pair of jeans ordering coffee selecting
a wireless carrier applying to college choosing a doctor or setting up a 401(k) everyday
decisions?both big and small?have become increasingly complex due to the over-whelming
abundance of choice. For Americans choice is the hallmark of individual freedom and
self-determination. But having too much choice can actually be detrimental: choice overload can
make you question your decisions before you make them set up unrealistically high expectations
and lead to self-blame for any failure. The result is decision-making paralysis anxiety and
perpetual stress and even clinical depression. In The Paradox of Choice Barry Schwartz shows
how the dramatic explosion in choice?from the mundane to the profound challenges of balancing
career family and individual needs?has led us to seek that which makes us feel worse.
Synthesizing current research Schwartz makes the counterintuitive case that reducing choices
can greatly reduce stress anxiety and the frenzy of daily life and offers eleven practical
steps to help you limit choices to a manageable number focus on the important ones and
ultimately derive greater satisfaction from the choices you have to make.
