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Mental Models · Card 8
Regret Minimization
Ask which choice you'd regret less.Not which feels safer now.
- Right now
- In ten years
- Saying no feels safer
- Fear usually stings more
For big, hard-to-reverse decisions, ask which choice you'd regret less looking back, not which one feels safer right now.
Missed chancehaunts longer
Reasoned attempteasier to live with
Regret if I don'tRegret if I do
In Practice
Turning down a well-researched investment out of fear usually stings more in ten years than a loss from one that was reasoned through and didn't work out.
Generic Example
Not applying for a role you wanted, out of fear of rejection, tends to be regretted longer than applying and hearing no.
Ask yourself
Ten years from now, which choice am I more likely to wish I'd made?