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On the TED video linked below, Dr. Sheena Iyengar suggests to us four methods that may ultimately help us improving our experiences in choosing. The first suggestion is Cut. In other words, “Less is more” (Iyengar, 2012). The fewer amounts of choices you have, the more you are actually willing to make a decision on one of those few choices. A good example of this is cutting your choices on the mayonnaise aisle. Instead of having to choose between 5 different brands, which each may have 3 different types of mayonnaise; if you had to choose only between 2 types of mayonnaise, regular or light, chances are that you are more willing to make a choice quicker and easier compared to the many choices presented in front of you.

The second suggestion is Concretization. Dr. Iyengar describes concretization as a need “for people to understand the differences between the choices they have to be able to understand the consequences associated with each choice. The consequences also need to be felt in a vivid sort of way” (Iyengar, 2012). In other words, for people to understand their options between the available choices, there needs to be some type of real consequence or view of the choice they are making, such as a picture of the places where they could travel to for vacation. The third suggestion for improving our experience with choosing is Categorization. According to Dr. Iyengar, “we can handle more categorizations than we can handle choices”. In other words, the more we are able to categorize our options or choices, the easier it becomes to make a decision because it makes it easier for us to understand out options. “The categories need to say something to the chooser, not the choice maker” (Iyengar, 2012).

The last suggestion is Condition for Complexity. As humans we have the capability to handle and understand a lot of information. But, in order to fully comprehend the information we need to take small steps towards increasing the amount of information we are processing. A great example of this is when purchasing your own custom made car (Iyengar, 2012). Since we need to start small, we begin in an area that has fewer choices such as the type of engine options the car has. Then, we gradually increase the amount of options and information we can process by selecting something that has more options than before, such as the options of the interior part of the car. We continue to gradually increase the amount of information we can handle until we are completely satisfied with the decision we have made.

Iyengar, S. (n.d.). Sheena Iyengar: How to make choosing easier | Video on TED.com. TED: Ideas worth spreading. Retrieved June 13, 2013, from http://www.ted.com/talks/sheena_iyengar_choosing_what_to_choose.html