Analyzers Anonymous

I overcomplicate my life.

My co-worker insists that women like us need a support group. The more educated you are, the more you care about other people, the more variables you take into account, the more swamped we become by our own internal trialogue.

Suddenly decisions that are simple for those with two-dimensional thinking become exponentially harder to make.

I used to be a lot better at making decisions, but then I added more variables. The more variables you add, the harder it is to choose.

What once was "I'm hungry - mom, I want a burger" becomes the infinitely more self-aware and, thus, complex "I'm hungry - but I have to check how much money I have in the bank, how many calories in the burger, whether I like the chicken or the beef or the vegetarian option, should I wait and go home to make myself a sandwich, do I have groceries at home..." and it goes on and on and ON.

If you're like me, you come up with all kinds of rules that serve as a schema to help you make decisions.

"I don't eat fast food."
"I only eat out twice a week."
"I don't pay more than x-amount for dinner out."
"I only eat out when I'm with people."

And this is just the kind of pseudo-iron-clad structures I create for something as simple as a meal. Imagine how vastly more complex the considerations become when applied to work or relationships.

AND, when these structures are no longer valid - when I've taken all the popular polls, done all the research, prayed all the prayers, when I'm left standing on the edge of a precipice of complete uncertainty where my only option is to "trust my gut" - I more often end up pulling back and running away, i.e. no decision at all.

Question of the hour: When all is said and done, how much of your life do you calculate and analyze and risk-assess and how much is simply you trusting your gut?

Question of the day: What do you do when you realize you've been skating on the self-made rules for so long, you aren't sure if they really apply anymore?

Question of the week: How many opportunities do we miss because we factor in so many variables that the only end result in our heads is a zero-sum situation where we prematurely sabotage ourselves?

Question of my LIFE: Is simple, in fact...better? Blast.