Satisficing

The wisdom of 'good enough' in a world of infinite choices

When in doubt, estimate. In an emergency, guess. But be sure to go back and clean up the mess when the real numbers come along.

You can't make it better until you make it work.

Don't let perfect become the enemy of good enough. The quest for perfection often prevents completion.

Optimization is the enemy of execution. Better to have a good solution now than a perfect one never.

The cost of finding the perfect choice often exceeds the benefit of having it.

Satisficing recognizes that decision-making has diminishing returns - past a certain point, more analysis yields less insight.

In most domains, 80% of the value comes from 20% of the options. Find that 20% and move on.

The perfect solution to the wrong problem is worth less than a good solution to the right problem.

Analysis paralysis is the tax you pay for refusing to accept 'good enough'.

Satisficing is not settling - it's the strategic allocation of decision-making resources.

The optimal choice in theory is often inferior to the good choice in practice.

Better a decision that's 80% right and implemented than one that's 100% right and still being debated.

The marginal improvement from perfect over good is rarely worth the exponential increase in effort.

Satisficing frees up cognitive resources for decisions that actually matter.

The goal is not to find the absolute best, but to find something that works well enough and move forward.

Perfectionism is procrastination in disguise - satisficing is productivity in action.

In a world of infinite options, the ability to satisfice is a superpower.

The perfect plan executed tomorrow is worse than the good plan executed today.

Satisficing acknowledges that most decisions are reversible, while time is not.

The search for perfection often reveals more about the searcher's psychology than the problem's requirements.

Good enough today is better than perfect never - momentum creates its own perfection.

Satisficing is the antidote to the tyranny of choice - it restores agency by embracing adequacy.

The cost of delaying a decision often exceeds the cost of making a suboptimal one.