[Rolling_Stock]

In an era where ‘Information is Wealth’, we often get into a trap of Information overload / overdose.

Be it any topic, right from buying a Car, Real estate, Gadget, Education, and plenty more, we end up having plethora of information that can make it difficult to analyze or distinguish between what’s pertinent and what’s superfluous.

I personally face this issue (especially in the last 5 years) and struggle to make the right choices?

The solution that worked for me was, taking a pause (days, weeks, months) and go by the heart, which is no scientific means. There is an equal probability of pain and gain.

The confusing part is, I’m comfortable taking decisions professionally (as a Manager) rather than personally. I'm unsure why so ?

I request the fellow members to through some light on this topic and how do they manage it.

Or is it just me !!

The discussion is more about the process, rather than the result.

Also, what Team-BHP can do better to unclutter at least the car buying process?

[Kosfactor]

Different people would like to do it in different ways.

Some people would like to make elaborate tables with a comparison chart of all things about the vehicle.

Some would go by the seat of their pants feel.

Some would just buy what is popular.

Some want a car others are not buying.

There are more variables, but as a part of this community, all are welcome

So what do you want to do with your car? We will start there.

[gkveda]

Someone has said "We are drowning in the ocean of information but still starving for a water droplet of knowledge".

In the era of information technology, it is not a surprise to see ocean of information about any product. But, information is just information. It can not be substituted for knowledge. Knowledge is gained only through repeated use of the product and experience gained while using the product.

So, It is well known fact that knowledge comes through experience. So, I first gain personal experience with the product that I need. For example, if I need a car, I gain first hand experience by taking test drive and form opinion. I will keep my experience and knowledge gained through experience as reference and then use the knowledge gained to validate the information available on internet(Please note, if you do vice versa, i.e, try to validate your knowledge through the information available on net, you can easily get trapped and drown in the ocean of information.). I use 80-20 rule to conclude the information available on net is right.

And once I get convinced that my knowledge gained matches the information on the net, then I will be closer to make the decision.

If my knowledge and information on net do not match, I will continue my research on the product through gaining experience (2nd test drive, for example, to check if the issues mentioned in the net really exist)

There is one big limitation in the above method. Unless you have the product in hand(it may belong to you, your friend or someone else) you will not be able to decide. I accept this limitation and hence will NOT go with purchase unless I have first hand experience.

[adisan]

If professional decisions are aimed at reasonably well-defined quantifiable objectives, that explains why they are comfortable.

In the personal sphere, there are significant others whose opinions matter. But their expectations are seldom clearly defined. It might help to list out all the expectations, and arrive at a final list by eliminating items based on mutual discussion and agreement. That way, everyone knows what is being aimed at.

That will make it somewhat easier to distinguish what information is pertinent.

Eventually some decisions might still turn out to be wrong. Just accept it, adapt to it, learn the lessons, and resolve to keep learning.

[arijitkanrar]

Having made a few purchase decisions (some trivial and some no-so-trivial) recently, I can completely relate to this.
More information -> More confusion. Especially in this world where information is high in quantity but less in quality.

Whenever I tried to gather information from the web, I found a pattern:
- No reviews talk about exactly what you want to know. You have to cherry pick sections from many reviews to understand what you want.
- Objective reviews like specs comparison are helpful but they dont say how you will feel about a product. They are just guidelines!
- Its very difficult to judge how good a product is for you. Most reviews include results based on the personal preferences of the reviewer and you must be aware that your preferences may not be the same.

The only way to get any sort of useful information from online reviews is to look for the negatives pointed out in the reviews and then filter out options based on them i.e. find out how bad a product is and not how good.

After you have filtered out the bad products (bad as per your preferences), as BHPian gkveda mentioned, then you have gain experience on the ones that seem good to find what suits you.
Here is when you will realize that there will never be a product which will satisfy all your requirements.
So then what I do is to decide what specific features/characteristics are important to me and choose the product that best suits my requirements.
Most consumer products in this day have reached a level that once you have filtered out the bad ones, there really is no way to go wrong with the remaining ones. It just is personal preference at that point.

To give a recent example: TV purchase.
First we eliminate the ones which we really didnt want to go for. This removed a lot of TVs from the list (mostly Chinese made TVs).
Then after finding out the negatives of a few more brands, eliminated a few more options (some more Chinese brands but not due nationalism, for obvious negatives).
After that we were left with just three brands in which to choose from. All were good in specific areas but we had to prioritize what we wanted.
Obviously picture quality is the top candidate when it comes to a TV but when I thought hard about it, I felt is that really that important now since the remaining brands all provide very good picture quality?
Of course we can make out the difference in a showroom when comparing them side by side but would it really matter when you are watching only one in your living room?
So picture qaulity now becomes secondary (as long as its pretty good/very good, its okay).
Then look at other features (like how future proof the TV is? how good will it work in your living room etc.).
This helped in finalizing the TV.

This is just an example.
Sorry for the long rant!

All the best with your car purchase!

[Rolling_Stock]

Wonderful point of views giving different perspectives.

Originally Posted by Kosfactor

So what do you want to do with your car? We will start there.

Originally Posted by arijitkanrar

All the best with your car purchase!

Sorry, I'm not in the process of buying a car.
Done that already just a year back after a struggle of 2 good years.

The most recent one was buying a new Mixer grinder. It took me almost 4 months to decide upon the final one.

As I face this challenge every time, I intend to approach this forum to understand the process of digesting the information mafia.

Thanks for your contributions.

[comfortablynumb]

Originally Posted by Rolling_Stock

As I face this challenge every time, I intend to approach this forum to understand the process of digesting the information mafia. Thanks for your contributions.

Though it's not an answer to your question, I would urge you (and other readers of this thread) to watch this video:

https://youtu.be/yhtmhaboE94

This is the shorter version:

https://youtu.be/VO6XEQIsCoM

[@og_adi]

Some of the opinions shared here are beneficial in the structuring of constructive thought processes in the future. With my contribution here, I would like to present only my personal experiences and learnings which now make me feel wiser for a strange reason and much more mature during purchases which may range from the smallest of the items to the ones that are really heavy on the bank balance.

It was around 2013 if I'm not wrong when for the first time we placed an order online just for the sake of it. The waiting times kept me restless and for some reason I was skeptical whether my order passed through and if I would really be getting what I ordered. Dad had enough experiences with these when abroad years prior to this but it was something new to me. On the third day, found my first badminton racket delivered in a very neatly packed package which led to great amusement over how easy the whole process was and the number of options I had to pick one from. It felt so free after years of store shopping which led to some compromised buys and less options to choose from. Obviously, it led to online purchases only 95% of the times over the years . Initially, it was for the wide range of options, but later on ended up to be vital, thanks to me becoming completely lazy and dependent on these services. Sure, it has been a real boon during these tough times and there's no two ways about it.

Something did change after the second wave though. My laptop decided to show its age just after about 3 years of service, and it honestly didn't make sense to spend anymore money on it. Time to upgrade, nice, but which one now? The search started online as usual and went on for days and days. It involved some intense filling of rows & columns in excel sheets, browsing on the internet etc. It felt like an infinite loop where I always landed at the start point and the evaluation process would repeat all over again. I finally decided to strike off a few products which didn't appear right for my use case and promised myself not to look back at them. It did work for sometime but eventually failed. I realized I wasn't happy enough even with the products costing 20% higher than my budget too. Everything now felt like a compromise when looked at from the other side of the screen. Days of review reads wasted, specs and features sheets created wasted as I no longer had the interest to search for the ONE.
For the sake of it, decided to go to a store with family to look for options first hand. As soon as I enter the store, I see how good the ones that I had rejected felt in person. Never bothered to check out the ones that were priced significantly higher than the set budget. Spent around 3 hours in store to pick up the laptop that I had rejected first in the list created days ago for about the same price as mentioned in the online shopping websites but with 3 years of additional warranty. The initial apprehension that products cost higher in stores as compared to online retailers was now gone. Was it a compromised pick? No, it was perfect, it was the ONE that I had been wasting some really precious time for. The whole experience was smooth and in fact felt so good that for the next few buys, created few SOPs for purchasing things.

Sharing the same-
1) Objective view- Setting a budget first and making a list of products that match up to your requirements. If something worth stretching the budget found, evaluate whether you really require it. Just going by the trend and buying "the best" doesn't really justify the purchase if not really necessary.

2) Perspectives- Filter mechanism during browsing to now be gathering objective facts and reading customer & professional reviews only to some extent. Expecting 100% positive reviews is only imagining so cutting down the list to things which keep away from known problems and cons according to one's needs.

3) Subjective view- Most needs are satisfied by the above steps, but if still in doubt, evaluate a product personally. First hand experience with the product often relaxes the mind.

4) VFM option- In that super rare scenario where you still find yourself scratching your head, just go for the VFM option. You can at least reason out with yourself in the future that the pick was more VFM.

To conclude, I think the right balance that I've found now is to get an objective study online and a subjective analysis in person to put it in one line (Not attaching the cringe Thanos' perfect balance meme ). It sure feels great to see India move towards a consumer based market, but sometimes the options do get on one's nerves and often makes one push the purchase time indefinitely. Making the right purchase at the right time and price is difficult, so learning to live with those slight compromises is essential.

Thank you!

[deep_bang]

Some rules that I have learnt by experience:
1. If buying a very desirable product, for example a phone, sleep over it for some days. This almost always brings out the real intent you are buying it for and ensures it's not an impulsive buy.

2. For some decisions look towards your friends and relatives who are usually good at making decisions. For example, when you are buying a house, you may want to check with a certain friend who has somehow always made the right decisions in real estate investments.

3. It's important to know from past history what types of decisions you don't make well. For example, I tend to look too much over the spec of an electronic product, which does not really tell much about certain aspects such as usability. So, learning from past mistakes is super important.

4. Get a second opinion and then go with it. Analysis paralysis happens because you tend to feel you are the sole decison maker and if it is wrong it's all on you. Getting another opinion of your spouse/brother/sister/friend helps bring another perspective that you may not have thought about. I have in the past made decisions in spite of my friends not having a favourable opinion - because I was so strongly in favor of a making a certain decison. Thats ok too. Atleast you will have analysed reasons why and why not.

5. Look to your peers for items where you cannot go wrong. For example if you look at the thread related to consumer appliances and look at opinions of tbhpians on a mixer grinder, you would see many suggesting a Panasonic and Preethi (may be a few more). So you can already narrow down to a certain set of 2 to 3 models.

Lastly, tbhp is such a place that you can ask about what mixer to buy, as well as what sites to shop, as well as about what car to buy in a certain price range.

Finally, one more last advice. When buying an item that's not very expensive, don't spend your time on too much analysis. Look for the best, and don't worry about paying a premium. Your time is more valuable than the small premium you pay.

[GTO]

Well said, man. Information overload is a real thing & I even found my brother going through "analysis paralysis" when he was buying a car in 2021. My advice to him and others:

- With the information of the entire world at our fingertips, it's best to trust just 1 - 3 sources for information on any topic. Example, for cars Team-BHP & 2 others you respect. For legal advice, I go to kaanoon.com & 1 specialist lawyer in the field I need advice. For interiors, I defer to my brother-in-law & a very close friend. When I was recently shopping for an Android phone, I referred to the discussions on Team-BHP & Reddit only. Ended up so happy that we bought 3 of them!

- End of the day, once you have processed the information, just go ahead and pull the trigger. Make the decision. Set a deadline by when you have to close the decision.

- Don't ask too many people and don't "over-research" anything. Indians are very, very good at giving advice, even on topics we know nothing about.

[am1m]

1. Choose your sources wisely. Does the person giving the information have any actual experience with the product/situation? Are they qualified to give accurate info?
2. Whatsapp is like the gossipy neighborhood aunty or uncle, usually malicious. Even if well-meaning, usually clueless. Don't rely on whatsapp forwards for advice!
3. Don't over-analyze, especially for most consumer purchases. Frankly what is the difference between branded TV A and branded TV B? In all probability they are manufactured in the same assembly line in China!
4. Once you've decided, just buy and don't indulge in 'buyer's remorse'.
5. If you're using an Excel sheet for electronics purchases, consider if you're going overboard. Go for a long walk instead, much better for your physical and mental health!

[Chetan_Rao]

One simple thing, that seems like a great idea on paper at the beginning but causes a lot of indecision and sleepless nights later, is approaching a purchase from a 'what can I get for this much money?' perspective, instead of 'what do I want that fits in this budget?'.

Yes it's nice to have lots of options, but a scattershot approach of considering everything that fits a given budget just causes decision paralysis eventually. Realization dawns pre-purchase sometimes and we course-correct, but people often end up with a 'why did I buy THAT?' situation too.

Far better to nail down a combination of budget + requirements, and use that as a starting point.

[shancz]

Excellent topic to bring to the fore, have experienced it first hand, went with my gut feeling which most of the times happens to be my first choice.

Originally Posted by Rolling_Stock

what Team-BHP can do better to unclutter at least the car buying process?

For buying cars I can say that : (in-line with GTO's comment on giving advice )
- the objective/Why of the purchase has to be clearly defined
- any technical limitations evaluated
- seat that would be used (driver/passenger)
- size comfortable with based on personal/road/traffic/parking/environment conditions
- The most important still is how you feel when driving/sitting in it. Leave the sheets and specs aside and take a/many detailed Test Drives.
I would suggest this one time read on TDs : Poitive (Guide: How to take Effective Test-Drives of new cars)

In general though what works for me is sticking true to the basics and simple reasoning before any decision car or otherwise.

Like the recent thread on PPF, I remember going to the 3M shop for a friend and the guy quoting an estimate for 1.2 lakhs IIRC for essentially sticking high quality plastic on the factory paint with a 10 year shelf life.
I just couldn't see the logic in spending so much money to preserve the paint for the person who's going to buy the car from me after 10 years. On top of that I would like to experience what I paid for already, the factory paint.

[Poitive]

A few things help:

1. Check the cost of going wrong and spend time and resources accordingly. It depends on how much the spend is, and also how important the purchase/decision's impact is.

2. Allow yourself to be wrong about the small things, and not be too strict with yourself for such.

3. Figure out where head plays a bigger role and where heart does, and decide accordingly. Being too analytical for things purchases mainly for the heart (or vice a versa) often does not work too well.

4. Use your trusted sources - people you know, online communities, other sources.

5. Use horses for courses. Eg: Asking for car advice from the best intentioned friend who does not know the subject well, is worse than asking "strangers" on T-bhp.

~~~~~~~~

Originally Posted by Rolling_Stock

The confusing part is, I’m comfortable taking decisions professionally (as a Manager) rather than personally. I'm unsure why so ?

Two factors come to mind:

A) There is something called "skin in the game". Going wrong on other's money and one's own is different. Also, the office system might allow one to get away from the consequences whereas the personal one, one has to bear. Not saying this is the case. Just a possibility worth considering

B) Professional decisions are often more from the head and many companies give the broad parameters to base those on. Personal decisions often not so (and also more likely about emotions/heart), and often might mean cutting a sorry figure in the family and friends circle. More than they saying things, it could well be what we imagine they might be thinking - a slippery slope!

However take heart, mate. Analysis-paralysis happens to many of us in some situations and for some things we really care for.

~~~~~~~~

Originally Posted by shancz

- The most important still is how you feel when driving/sitting in it. Leave the sheets and specs aside and take a/many detailed Test Drives.
I would suggest this one time read on TDs : Poitive (Guide: How to take Effective Test-Drives of new cars)

Edit: Just read this!

[Miyata]

To me, it is a matter of self-discovery / self-awareness.

If I know myself better in some aspects, decision making seems efficient - which car to buy; what courses to take on coursera; books to read; work prioritization; job change; MF and stock investments; etc.

If I remain ignorant of my own self in some aspects -- possibly a little along the lines of system 1 of Daniel Kahneman’s thinking fast and slow - this is where I suffer more! This induces bouncing about with every new information; a buyers remorse; need to being back soon enough to the market; early 'upgrade' itch; etc.