If you're like me in that you have a serious sweet tooth, and just the thought of dessert gets your mouth watering, then you know what a triumph it is to find a favorite ice cream store. But maybe you're on vacation in an unfamiliar place, or there are too many competing ice cream shops to sample them all - how do you know which one will be best? Worry no more; I'll give you an answer that will never fail. The tastiest, most satisfying ice cream will always be found at the place with the fewest flavors.

Before I tell you how I can be so sure, let's flash back to a Christmas morning in my youth when I excitedly unwrapped a new game for my beloved Nintendo. It was a shooting game, and my parents had neglected to purchase the gun that went with it. Since I had enough presents already, they decided I would go with my mother the next day to return the game and choose a different one in its place - one that wouldn't require an extra purchase.

It should have been a day of unbridled joy - going to Toys R Us and picking out any Nintendo game I wanted - and for a while, it was. But as I scanned the rows and rows of games, each seemingly more appealing than the next, my joy turned to concern, which melted into anxiety. There were dozens of games; what if I didn't like the one I chose? What if it was too easy? Or too hard? What if there was a better game on the shelf that I missed seeing? How could I know I was choosing the best one?

Wracked with fear of making a bad decision, I plucked the best-looking game off the shelf, brought it home, played it once, and promptly hated it. I just knew I should have chosen a different one.

I didn't fully understand the oppressive dynamics involved in that angst-filled day until reading "The Paradox of Choice" by Barry Schwartz. In our wonderfully affluent society, he states, our abundance of choice in everything from food to clothing, from career paths to marriage partners, is making us not happier but more miserable. One of the problems has to do with opportunity costs. Choosing that Nintendo game made me miserable because I knew how many other appealing games I was missing out on, and that significant opportunity cost overshadowed my enjoyment of the game I picked out. Next time you go out for ice cream, steer clear of the place offering 30 flavors. Given all that choice, the average person might identify 10 flavors she likes, then narrow the field to four, and finally make a tough decision - say, black raspberry. But go into the shop offering six flavors, and I'll bet you identify two that you really like before settling on one - chocolate. You're free to enjoy your ice cream without worrying about all the other choices you had to forego. Knowing that she had to pass up nine other appealing flavors, Ms. Black Raspberry won't enjoy her ice cream nearly as much as you will, since your opportunity costs were much lower. Just don't let her spot the chocolate dribbling down your shirt.

BILL ZUCK is now really hungry for some ice cream. You can reach him at wcz78@yahoo.com.