Responding to Hard Choices

When it comes to making difficult decisions, I always compile a list of the benefits and disadvantages of all possible choices, ultimately selecting the option whose benefits far outweigh those of its competitors. Should I ask for new clothes or new books for my birthday? Which wall calendar should I buy? Should I accept my admission to UNC Charlotte, Clemson, or another college? Creating a list to determine the best possible solution always seemed the most reasonable approach when stuck between choices. After listening to Ruth Chang's TedTalk, "How to make hard choices," however, introduced to me to a new perspective on decision-making.

Chang explains that "the reasons that govern our choices as correct or incorrect sometimes run out, and ... we have the power to create reasons for ourselves to become the distinctive people that we are." She supports that hard choices are hard because values cannot be quantified. In my earlier statement, I used terms such as "outweigh" and "solution," but Chang argues that at times, there is no way to determine which alternative is better than the other because aspects of some choices cannot be given a number. Rather than being rational about decision-making, she suggests finding reasons for choosing a decision. By allowing ourselves to take a stand behind one choice rather than the other, Chang explains that we are able to come up with our own reasons to make the choices we do, and this makes for a more effective decision, as there is no better alternative other than the one we make reasons for. 

Although I had some difficulty comprehending what Chang meant, I can try to apply her reasoning method to everyday choices I make. I find it confusing that there is no way to quantify decisions. If I were to give an alternative some reason to choose it, I would still see this as a benefit. I do not understand how can be more options other than one alternative being better than the other and alternatives being equal, as Chang stated. Nevertheless, I will try to think about my personal reasons to make decisions in the future.