Economic psychologist Barry Schwartz coined these words to describe two different personalities.
Maximizers continuously search for the best choice, often discarding the adequate, fearful they will miss out on something better. This leads to anxiety, depression, and discontent.
For the Satisficers, good enough is fine with them. If it fulfills their needs, they’re happy. They make their decisions quickly and then move on. I fall more into this category than the other. But sometimes, my good enough — isn’t — and snap decisions often get me into trouble.
My husband is the opposite. He does research, mulls over the
choices, and then contemplates some more. Meanwhile, since I’ve already made my decision, I’m dancing around him, trying to hurry him along. That only makes him dig his
heels in deeper. Kind of like the tortoise and the hare. (But after he took six
months to pick out table lamps when we had none, that warranted a little nudge, didn't it?)
However, unlike a Maximizer, once my husband makes a decision,
he moves on. I imagine that’s why God teamed us up. We balance each other.
Back to the basic descriptions, Satisficers sound a lot like
St. Paul in Timothy 6:6-8: “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For
we brought nothing into this world: and certainly, we can carry nothing out.
But having food, and wherewith to be covered, with these we are content.”
That’s the point. Being content with what we
have, not yearning for more, worrying there’s something better around the
corner or yet to be discovered. (The grass is greener concept?)
I once asked a friend why some families with large incomes
still struggle from paycheck to paycheck. He told me, “Because as their income
grows, they upscale their home, cars, furniture, and so on. The ratio of income
vs debt remains the same.”
I never understood that. I have always been happy with my
modest home and old car. A little more income when I was raising my kids would have
ease some of the stress of never having quite enough. But as with the loaves
and the fishes, God made my little stretch just far enough.
At this point in my life, our income is larger than our
debt. Although we’d love to make some upgrades to our older home, it’s good enough.
We drive a twenty plus year-old vehicle in good condition. It too is good
enough.
Overall, we’re satisfied. I guess that makes us Satisficers
right along with St. Paul.
How about you? Are you a Maximizer, a Satisficer, or a blend
of both?
