The more options there are, the easier it is to regret anything at all that is disappointing about the option that you chose.

Source: "The Paradox of Choice." TEDGlobal 2005. Jul. 2005. Conference Presentation. Additional Information: This quote is from psychologist Barry Schwartz's 2005 TED Talk on the subject of personal choice. The quote means that although we assume that having more freedom of choice will make us happier, this is not the case; the reason that having more options to choose from doesn't promote happiness is that we become less satisfied with the choice we ultimately make. If we are in any way disappointed with our choice, even with something as seemingly inconsequential as buying a pair of pants, we think of all the other options we could have chosen and assume one of them would have been better than what we chose -- even if this isn't actually true. According to Schwartz, modern society provides us with too many choices, resulting in discontent. Watch the full TED Talk here: Barry Schwartz - The Paradox of Choice

“The Paradox of Choice.” TEDGlobal 2005. Jul. 2005. Conference Presentation.