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Opportunity costs...

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"The secret of happiness is.... low expectations" Barry Schwartz


This is an oft repeated refrain. Schwartz claims in his TED lecture that having too many choices reduces freedom, encourages disappointment, and assigns blame to the individual. I like it. I don't have a way to test how true either premise is but I know the idea about happiness is reasonable. There just isn't enough of an individual to cover all the intellectual ground there is to cover but I think I am going to just take this one and run with it. I am going to lower my expectations and reduce the number of choices available to myself. In fact I have already done so in many situations. I eat the same cereal day after day. I order the same meals at the same restaurants time after time. I stick with the same patterns in work, play, and exercise. And I think I am happy. I should go for the pleasant surprise.

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