The Paradox of Choice

There will be anticipatory regret that the overall best car doesn’t have the best sound system (“Will I be kicking myself for not having better sound if I buy this car?”), and there will be postdecision regret that the overall best car doesn’t have the best sound system (“Why couldn’t they have made the stereo better?”). The more options there are, the more if only’s you will be able to generate. And with each if only you generate will come a little more regret and a little less satisfaction with the choice you actually made.

because to give the shoes away or throw them away would force you to acknowledge a loss. Similarly, people hold on to stocks that have decreased in value because selling them would turn the investment into a loss. What should matter in decisions about holding or selling stocks is only your assessment of future performance and not (tax considerations aside) the price at which the stocks were purchased.