I was in trouble the second I saw them in the store window: two perfect winter coats, both suitable for a frosty Canadian January, and neither of them on sale. After many, many visits to the dressing room and enough debate to drive even the most patient sales clerk batty, I finally made my decision – I bought both of them.
Three years later, one of those coats sits in my closet virtually untouched while the other is practically falling apart at the seams. My credit card has since recovered, but I still wonder why I couldn't just pick one.
"Our decision-making style is a combination of different factors, including risk tolerance, temperament and early learning," says Tara O'Connell, a Toronto-based psychotherapist. Often, she says, the decision-making behaviours we were exposed to growing up can form our own habits as adults(thanks, Mom and Dad).
But you don't have to resign yourself to being either a control freak who pounces on every opportunity to make a decision, or a person who never has an opinion one way or another: there are simple ways to break out of bad decision-making patterns. Take our quiz to find out what type of decision maker you are, and how you can sharpen your skills to help you make better choices.
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Question 1 of 5
You're at your favourite restaurant and can't decide between your two favourite dishes – the pasta primavera or the grilled chicken. You:
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