Why do people often make irrational decisions despite knowing better?

People often make irrational decisions even when they know better because it’s like choosing a lollipop now instead of getting two later.

Imagine you have a big bowl of your favorite candy, let's say, red gummy worms. You could take one right now, or wait and get two. You know that two is more than one. But sometimes, your brain says, “Why wait? Just eat the one!” That’s like making an irrational decision, you know what’s better, but you pick something less good just because it feels better right now.

Your brain has two parts working together: one that thinks about the future (like planning a party), and another that wants fun things now (like eating candy). The “fun now” part is like a little kid who can’t wait for birthday cake, it just wants to dive in.

Sometimes, your brain gets confused by all the choices around you. It’s like trying to pick between five different toys at once, it doesn’t know which one to choose, so it picks one that feels good right then instead of what’s best overall.

That's why people sometimes do things they later wish they hadn't, because their brain chose fun now over better later!