In The Age of Paradoxes

With our almost unlimited choices in social media and search engines, we always have at least two decent answers to every search, question or opinion.

With so many choices, marketers (including idea merchants and politicians) try to give us compelling reasons to choose their product or service.

These choices are connected by a common category, yet separated by the benefits or features that make them different from each other.

We decide what makes two similar products or services different in just a few seconds. The more effective a marketing message, the more likely we are to choose A over B.

So “on the other hand” isn’t a phrase only for economists now. It’s become part of the process we use to differentiate between our options.

The more subtle the gap between A and B, and the less time we have to compare, the more familiar we become with paradoxes.

Because a paradox is defined as something that combines contradictory features or qualities. Or it can be a statement that seems at first to be absurd or self-contradictory, yet eventually makes some kind of sense.

“The paradox of war is that it involves killing people to stop people from killing each other.”

“The more undernourished our children are, the more obese they become.”

“The more we communicate with each other, the less we really listen.”

As compulsive choosers, we hear paradoxical statements every day and accept them more easily than ever.

And there are rules for the uses, care and feeding of paradoxes. So stay tuned.