Basenotes › Basenotes Forums › Fragrance Discussion › Male Fragrance Discussion › MFD Archive › Wasted Effort in Decision Making.
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:

Wasted Effort in Decision Making.

post #1 of 35
1/12/07 at 6:51pm
Thread Starter 
I've just done it again. I'm going to a wedding today. Last night I was wondering what to wear. After much pondering, taking into account factors like weather conditions, formality, my temperament, the people likely to be there, clothes etc, I decided on Bvlgari Blv.

Until 5 minutes ago, it was still going to be Bvlgari Blv. I opened the drawer, saw a bottle of Magnetism among the many there, and put it on instead.

I do this all the time. Does anybody else share this quirk or is it just me?
Renato
Reply
Reply

Features on Basenotes

Basenotes Reader Awards 2013 - Finalists Announced.
Petals Falling From The Sky - A Report From The Cote d'Azur's Bataille De Fleurs
Greatest Hits: Annick Menardo
post #2 of 35
1/12/07 at 8:36pm
Just the other night, I was dead set on wearing Le Male... then i saw the pretty bottle that was Givenchy VI

hehehe... i'm a fickle one...
Reply
Reply
post #3 of 35
1/12/07 at 9:33pm
I do that just about every other day. Today as I was bathing, doing my hair & putting on make-up...I kept saying in my head "ok, today I'm going to wear Tea for Two. Tea for Two. Tea for Two" Over & over to myself. Then I walked into my bedroom to get dressed, opened my perfume cabinet, saw Chanel PM 1955 and said "hmmm haven't worn this in ages" and madly starting spritzing away with nary a thought of Tea for Two. I don't understand my reasoning, really. Makes no sense. Often times I get pissed with myself for not following though with my original plan. Glad to see I'm not the only one...LOL

-Kim
Reply
Reply
post #4 of 35
1/13/07 at 2:40am
Happens all the time. I have a very reasonable, calm discussion (with myself) for 5 minutes, bleary-eyed, before I go to bed each night, and congratulate myself on my decision making prowess.

I wake up, and bleary-eyed, argue intensely (with myself) about what to wear today. Inevitably, it will never be what I chose the night before.

I'm starting to think I just can't trust myself anymore.
Reply
Reply
post #5 of 35
1/13/07 at 5:25am
Thread Starter 
Thanks Guys and Gal. I just got back from the wedding.

From the paucity of responses it appears we're in a minority. Still, it's nice to know we're not entirely alone.
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #6 of 35
1/13/07 at 5:36am
  • kbe
  • offline
  • Gender:
Based on these few responses, does that mean some posts in SOTD threads, if they were put there prior to the poster actually applying their 'chosen' Scent Of The Day', could be .....ummmm... inaccurate? ::Shudder!::
Reply
Reply
post #7 of 35
1/13/07 at 5:52am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by kbe

Based on these few responses, does that mean some posts in SOTD threads, if they were put there prior to the poster actually applying their 'chosen' Scent Of The Day', could be .....ummmm... inaccurate? ::Shudder!::

Surely a poster of integrity would edit his Intended SOTD to reflect his Actual SOTD - wouldn't he?
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #8 of 35
1/13/07 at 6:00am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Renato

Thanks Guys and Gal. I just got back from the wedding.

From the paucity of responses it appears we're in a minority. Still, it's nice to know we're not entirely alone.
Renato

Renato you have just made my crush list! I just have to love a man who appreciates language enough that he can use a word like paucity in general conversation... ::shivers with delight::

By the way, I am notorious for this type of mental convolution. I will go through my (extensive) collection, sniffing and determining exactly what I am going to wear the night before - only to awake with only the clear understanding that I absolutely am not going to / do not want to wear the perfume that I settled upon just a few scant hours before!

I tend not to state my SotD until I actually have it on my skin - and even then it can still be subject to change...
Reply
Reply
post #9 of 35
1/13/07 at 6:29am
I dont even pick out the scents I will wear for the day in advance. I pick out my outfit and consider the weather and what I will be doing while I am getting dressed. Then I will pick a scent. Today I am thinking either Tea for Two or Brit because it is rainy out.
Reply
Reply
post #10 of 35
1/13/07 at 5:18pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by moondeva

Renato you have just made my crush list! I just have to love a man who appreciates language enough that he can use a word like paucity in general conversation...

Thanks for your most expressive and considerate thoughts.
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #11 of 35
1/13/07 at 5:19pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by ToadKings

I dont even pick out the scents I will wear for the day in advance. I pick out my outfit and consider the weather and what I will be doing while I am getting dressed. Then I will pick a scent. Today I am thinking either Tea for Two or Brit because it is rainy out.

Clearly no wasted effort on your part. Well done.
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #12 of 35
1/13/07 at 5:21pm
Today I was set on wearing Chrome. I even posted that as my SOTD. Not even 5 minutes later I got a craving to wear Gaultier2. I went back & changed my post .
Reply
Reply
post #13 of 35
1/13/07 at 5:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Renato

Thanks for your most expressive and considerate thoughts.
Renato

ooohhh, Renato, you have just made MY crush list! I love a man who can respond to compliments in such a gracious and gentlemanly manner.
(and yeah, moondeva, I get what you mean, vocabulary is a real cerebral turn on)
Reply
Reply
post #14 of 35
1/13/07 at 5:45pm
to answer the question, I rarely make my scent decision the night before. I do, however, allow myself a good 15 minutes pre shower and dressing to spritz my sotd "nominees" on various appendages and let them settle. I check to see which melds with the mood of the day, sometimes check fellow basenoters inspirations, and then make my decision.
if all goes well, that is.
a perilous road we walk, we fragonistas.
Reply
Reply
post #15 of 35
1/13/07 at 6:27pm
Yes, it has happened to us all. You just got to go with what the ol' nose is telling you! I also can sympathize with those who love an intellectual conversation. Although I will not be adding you to my "Crush List" Renato as I am not a woman, I did enjoy a similar experience not too long ago reading a very insightful argument that was taking place on luckyscents about some sort of fragrance called "Unifaith" (the short version of the name). It nearly brought a tear to my eye!
Reply
Reply
post #16 of 35
1/13/07 at 6:39pm
I think the moral of this thread is that the wrong way to make decisions is to carefully, consciously, deliberate. I see this mistake all the time: people agonizing over the pros and cons. The fact is that your brain does all of this stuff automatically and very quickly. If you are consciously reflecting you are just getting in the way of your brain doing what it does best: sifting and weighing.

Some years ago I had a friend who told me of an important decision he had to make it was whether to get married and the long two weeks he had spent weighing the pros and cons to reach a decision. My first reaction was that it would not, could not, work out well if he came to the decision this way. You know or you don't, because your brain is much better at doing this sort of thing unconsciously than you could ever do consciously. By reflecting in this way you are upsetting your natural process of cogitation.

Most of the time people reflect on what to wear I think simply because they like dwelling on the things they love. But when you wake up your brain has had a night to make up its own mind, and it is sensible not to stand in its way.

Watch what you reach for that is what you have already decided to wear.
Reply
Reply
post #17 of 35
1/13/07 at 7:39pm
The most I've changed my SOTD is three times... that's not bad is it?
- Rich
Reply
Reply
post #18 of 35
1/13/07 at 7:52pm
yeah, every day. hard to know what you'll want to wear friday morning on thursday night. i wouldn't think about it too much. whatever feels right at the moment. that's generally all that matters.
Reply
Reply
post #19 of 35
1/13/07 at 7:58pm
No need to use your mental energy and think about such a trivial issue (I'm a fanatic also, but come on it is trivial in the grand scope of things) so far in advance. Just live, and in the moment pick what stirrs you.
Reply
Reply
post #20 of 35
1/13/07 at 8:31pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Renato

I've just done it again. I'm going to a wedding today. Last night I was wondering what to wear. After much pondering, taking into account factors like weather conditions, formality, my temperament, the people likely to be there, clothes etc, I decided on Bvlgari Blv.

Until 5 minutes ago, it was still going to be Bvlgari Blv. I opened the drawer, saw a bottle of Magnetism among the many there, and put it on instead.

I do this all the time. Does anybody else share this quirk or is it just me?
Renato

This is the perfect description of the lost battle between mind and impulse: Man is driven by instinct and emotion more than he is inclined to think. (Making the effort can still be helpful.)
Reply
Reply
post #21 of 35
1/14/07 at 12:25am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by rtamara41

ooohhh, Renato, you have just made MY crush list! I love a man who can respond to compliments in such a gracious and gentlemanly manner.
(and yeah, moondeva, I get what you mean, vocabulary is a real cerebral turn on)

Thank you very much for your very candid and warm compliment.
Regards,
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #22 of 35
1/14/07 at 12:26am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by silk4ever

Although I will not be adding you to my "Crush List" Renato as I am not a woman, ........

I especially appreciate this...... thank goodness.
Regards,
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #23 of 35
1/14/07 at 12:29am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eluard

But when you wake up your brain has had a night to make up its own mind, and it is sensible not to stand in its way.

I think you may have hit the nail on it's head with your good point.
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #24 of 35
1/14/07 at 12:31am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by smndrummer

The most I've changed my SOTD is three times... that's not bad is it?
- Rich

Not really - in my more extravagant days, I used to actually wear three or more scents on any given day. Still do sometimes.
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #25 of 35
1/14/07 at 12:33am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by narcus

This is the perfect description of the lost battle between mind and impulse: Man is driven by instinct and emotion more than he is inclined to think. (Making the effort can still be helpful.)

Come to think of it, this is also a pretty good description of my stocks and equities selection technique.
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #26 of 35
1/14/07 at 6:07am
Quote:
Originally Posted by silk4ever

Yes, it has happened to us all. You just got to go with what the ol' nose is telling you! I also can sympathize with those who love an intellectual conversation. Although I will not be adding you to my "Crush List" Renato as I am not a woman, I did enjoy a similar experience not too long ago reading a very insightful argument that was taking place on luckyscents about some sort of fragrance called "Unifaith" (the short version of the name). It nearly brought a tear to my eye!

Tell me about it! At the risk of going somewhat off topic, read this review below by sweet diva (from her scent blog by the same name) and tell me it is not compelling! I love this imagery.

"Think of a package, wrapped in beautiful paper, a paisley of dark orange, pale green, and white. Tear away the paper and find a box, a dark, polished wood box, hand-crafted with clean, simple lines. Open the box and find there nested in brown velvet a heavy, handblown piece of glass fruit. Set it in a window, watch the light shine through and change through the day, shifting somehow from amber, to blood-red purple. The dry woods meld with the soft spicy fruit and floral notes, making a subtle statement. Where Coco strides confidently, where Opium slinks, where Fendi shouts and waves, Citta di Kyoto floats gracefully across the room, like a ballerina, effortless. You can't help but notice."
Reply
Reply
post #27 of 35
1/14/07 at 6:15am
Very good points here:
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eluard

the wrong way to make decisions is to carefully, consciously, deliberate.

The fact is that your brain does all of this stuff automatically and very quickly. If you are consciously reflecting you are just getting in the way of your brain doing what it does best: sifting and weighing.

when you wake up your brain has had a night to make up its own mind, and it is sensible not to stand in its way.

Like with choosing with scents to buy, the key word with choosing the SotD is intuition.
Reply
Reply
post #28 of 35
1/14/07 at 6:42am
  • kbe
  • offline
  • Gender:
If a boxer had to think about each punch before delivering it to an opponent during a match would he/she be better off for it?

Does a skiing downhill racer simply react to each new turn, flat or bump in the run?

How about the non-tethered rock face climber--what type of thought goes into that instinctive grab when previously held positions suddenly change?

From an overall and carefully thought out strategy prior to the event comes that moment of non-duality when the unconscious mind takes over and, in a flash, having already processed the possibilities from the input already digested, we act, we reach, we spray.

Very Zen and very much in tune with life itself.

And hey! 'Wrong' choice? There is always the promise of tomorrow..
Reply
Reply
post #29 of 35
1/14/07 at 8:18am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Renato

Come to think of it, this is also a pretty good description of my stocks and equities selection technique.
Renato

With good success, I hope !
Reply
Reply
post #30 of 35
1/14/07 at 8:36am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Renato

I do this all the time. Does anybody else share this quirk or is it just me?
Renato

It's not just you man, i do too share the same "problem".
The bad thing is, i tend to regret my decision later on.
Reply
Reply
post #31 of 35
1/14/07 at 8:45am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by narcus

With good success, I hope !

Not bad thanks. But the way the markets have been the last few years, it would take a certain kind of talent to have actually lost money.
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #32 of 35
1/14/07 at 8:52am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by castorpollux

It's not just you man, i do too share the same "problem".
The bad thing is, i tend to regret my decision later on.

Yikes! That's a double whammy, wasted effort plus regret.
I think we'll just have to take on board the various suggestions made acknowledging either our ability to make alternative decisions while we sleep, or that we're akin to zen-like boxers or that our emotions have a lot to do with it - and accept that it's natural and that there is little reason for true regret.
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #33 of 35
1/17/07 at 10:55pm
Sadly, I have done the same on occasion. I'll just stand there, staring, pondering...

Eenie meenie...

TNMA
Reply
Reply
post #34 of 35
1/18/07 at 6:19am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by thenmarcher

Sadly, I have done the same on occasion. I'll just stand there, staring, pondering...

Eenie meenie...

TNMA

Eanie meenie usually gets you the one you really want.....doesn't it?
Renato
Reply
Reply
post #35 of 35
1/18/07 at 7:12am
Choice always seems like a good option in the search for Identity, (I'll choose...I'll wear...) which is why it never reliably works...
Reply
Reply
New Posts  All Forums:Forum Nav:
  Return Home
  Back to Forum: MFD Archive

Features on Basenotes

Basenotes Reader Awards 2013 - Finalists Announced.
Petals Falling From The Sky - A Report From The Cote d'Azur's Bataille De Fleurs
Greatest Hits: Annick Menardo
Basenotes › Basenotes Forums › Fragrance Discussion › Male Fragrance Discussion › MFD Archive › Wasted Effort in Decision Making.