The Thinking Cost

 The Thinking Cost

Numerous reasons exist for why you think the way you do about your present life. Hopefully, the past few chapters have resonated. Hopefully, you don’t feel like you are alone in this journey from cynicism to optimism. 

For me, the majority of the problems that I face are made up in my mind. They were born as a minor inconvenience, deliberated much more than necessary, and become a major problem in my life I continue to deal with each day. If you feel the same, don’t be upset with yourself. You think a lot because you feel a lot. You want to know that what you are doing is the best thing you can do. You are a perfectionist.

Opportunity cost is often thought about among anxious individuals. Anxiety is created because we want to make sure the decision we are making is the best one, and there isn’t anything better out there. The fallback of this thought process: you will never know all the other options, and you will never be able to experience all of them anyway. No matter how you look at it, every single time we make a decision to do something, we say no to something else. That is the paradox of decision.

The mental cost of a lost opportunity is haunting for some. After all, regret hurts worse than anything. But after the opportunity is chosen, what happens next is most likely something you have not heard of. That is the thinning cost.

I first heard the concept of the thinking cost from British podcaster Chris Williamson. To paraphrase what he said, the thinking cost is time lost from considering an action rather than doing it. This could also be used to the time lost due to reflecting on an action already made.

Thinking cost is both a precursor and a product of opportunity cost.

You think that by carefully considering the action you take, you are making sure you avoid the pain of regret. But in reality, you are increasing your anxiety circulating around the decision, and losing precious time. In the time it takes you to carefully weigh every outcome, which you will never actually know, you could just take the action and find out what will actually happen. 

It seems that the more thought you give to a decision, the more predictable the outcome will be. This is a common fallacy. Although there is good evidence to say that a well-thought out decision will result in a more predictable outcome, the amount of thought required is much less than we think. There is not a specific amount of time, but for most, it is far less than they think.

Each day our minds make “uneducated” decisions. These “uneducated” decisions are those that are made without any forethought, consideration or pondering. They are those made out of habit, routine, and instinct. We make these decisions because something in our minds tells us that they are the correct decision to make based on prior evidence.

No, there isn’t prior evidence and experience for every decision we make. But, the evidence that is needed has to be collected at some point. It is either something we learn from experience, or something that is taught to us. What is taught to us isn’t always right either. One action may yield one result for one person, and a significantly different result for another person. Therefore, the best way of going about subjective decisions is to provide your own evidence.

Thinking cost as a product of opportunity cost has coincides with feelings of regret and potential for a better outcome. Because of the presence of a perceived better option, you feel the need to think more about what could have come from that option. You create an entire narrative in your head about the way things would have been had you made an alternative decision. This in itself will cost you more time than moving on to the next decision. 

The post opportunity thinking cost creates an excessive amount of regret and anxiety around your decision. Regret leads to pain and sadness. Anxiety leads to uncertainty and apprehension when making future decisions, and the cycle begins again.

Escaping the loop of the thinking cost

Excessive thinking prior to a decision and excessive reflection after a decision will create an endless loop of thinking. Escaping this loop is simple, but for those stuck in this loop, it may be difficult.

To escape this loop you must recognize the option that you made as the only option that it is possible to make. Yes, there was a possibility of making a different decision, but you didn’t make it and that’s how it will be. You must remind yourself that what happens will happen and nothing will ever change that. It is only possible to change the moment you are in. The past is definite and the future is indefinite. The future can be influenced, but it will never be changed.

Learning to accept that every decision you have made is unchangeable takes time, but it is simple. The difficulty comes with recognizing every decision you will make is also fixed. For some, this may create pressure in the mind. More anxiety stirs up when making decisions. But it is important to recognize that although a decision is made, you also have the ability to make more. No, it is impossible to reverse decisions, but it is possible to overwrite decisions. At some point all decisions will become part of the past and that will be your story. Don’t let the fear of regret be your reason for failing to make any decisions.

Memento mori. Remember you must die.

Death is inevitable. At some point in time, your time on earth ends. You have so many decisions to make and after that you will make no more. My best advice: make decisions. Failure to make decisions will result in a life that was not yours. You will go your entire life not living the way you wanted to, but rather living a life that was given to you by default. This is more depressing than failure. This is failure.

You will make poor decisions. You will screw up. You will say things you do not want to say. This is a part of learning. This is how you learn to make better decisions. Fear of decision making will never allow you to get better. The faster you fail, the faster you will find success. It is up to you to make the decisions and to gain the experience. Nobody can gain the experience for you.