My goodness, this describes me perfectly as well. The countless choices of a blank slate brings anxiety to a recovering perfectionist like me. Do I choose A or B or Z?

I prefer improving things rather than creating them from nothing. I’ve come to a similar conclusion as the author as far as how to get out of the fog of greenfield: Satisfice instead of optimize.

In this context, optimizing refers to choosing the best among N options. In contrast, satisficing means choosing the first option that’s good enough. Often, the opportunity cost saved from satisficing is greater than the marginal value gained from optimizing.