I considered my problems with making choices or taking decisions in the first post of this blog, I have often wondered whether it is purely due to laziness that I procrastinate or due my being overwhelmed by the decision making task that I fail to take action. Action requires decisions and the absence of decisions means actions can't be performed. Sometimes it gets so complex and confusing that I end up doing something addictive. This must be my brain's attempt to fool itself into thinking that it is doing something constructive.
I recently stumbled upon a TED video which seems to explain my inability to take concrete and constructive decisions in a more positive light. Heck, this guy seems to think I am doing the right thing in a world where we all operate with bounded rationality, where analysis can sometimes lead to paralysis. This is especially true in situations where our decisions are influenced both by that which is seen and by those that are unseen or yet to happen.
I recently stumbled upon a TED video which seems to explain my inability to take concrete and constructive decisions in a more positive light. Heck, this guy seems to think I am doing the right thing in a world where we all operate with bounded rationality, where analysis can sometimes lead to paralysis. This is especially true in situations where our decisions are influenced both by that which is seen and by those that are unseen or yet to happen.
Think of life as a game of Chess where you play against the world ; where your opponent's moves are decided not just by a simple popular vote ; but also by the weightage given to the choices/suggestions of various voters/players based on the opinions of the other voters/players ; which fluctuates over the course of the game. Further randomness is introduced if the various voters of the world who are collectively playing against you have moods influenced by events in their daily lives.
Eg: Assume there are 'n' people ganged up against you.
Player P1 recommends a move M1, Player P2 recommends move M2 and so on ...
P1 has an opinion O11 of his own strategy , O12 of P2's strategy and so on ...
P2 has an opinion O22 of his own strategy , O21 of P1's strategy and so on ...
| Move Recommended\Opinion Holder | P1 | P2 | P3 | ... | Pn |
| M1 | O11 | O21 | O31 | O...1 | On1 |
| M2 | O12 | O22 | O32 | O...2 | On2 |
| M... | O1... | O2... | O3... | O...... | On... |
| Mn | O1n | O2n | O3n | O...n | Onn |
The move that will be made will be the one that has the highest total of from the score of all the Os for each M , i.e move selected is max(Mx), where Mx = O1x+O2x+ ....+Onx
The inability to predict how our opponent/s will eventually play prevents us from making any deterministic moves. But we forget that they are also hampered by this ignorance of our future state just as we are of theirs. Sometimes therefore making late moves is better or helpful. Sometimes starting early and sticking to the course is better. We will always change our mind based on unfolding events. Life is after all one grand experiment. Sometimes we just have to stay stubborn like a mule and at other times be a ideological butterfly. When to be what depends on your mindset, dataset and circumstances.
You may have heard of the concept of code as data. What that means IMO is that the compiler is the software and the source code is the input data with the object code as the output. Well in life , the source code of the algorithms in your head keep on changing based on the data it processes. I like to think of these as some kind of genetic programs. The word "meme" could be appropriate as well. And in a world where our opinions are changing all the time it is hard to predict the future and therefore the best course of action to take for it.
