Do you often wonder why at certain parts of the day you can become less decisive, even avoid decisions?This status has a name, decision fatigue. Decision Fatigue is a state of mental overload that can impede a person’s ability to continue making decisions and cause a feeling of depletion. How do you combat this feeling and keep you sharp throughout the day?
According to American Medical Association article “What Doctors wish patients knew about Decision Fatigue“; by the time the average person goes to bed, they’ve made over 35,000 decisions . Some of these decisions are conscious, some are not. The article states the more choices you have to make, the more it can wear on your brain, and it may cause your brain to look for short cuts. For example, you may become more indecisive on a 5pm meeting that just waiting until the next day. “If your brain is worn down, it may cause you to become more reckless with your decision making or not think things through,” she added. It can also “cause you to simply do nothing, which can cause even more problems.” Additionally, you might notice that you get angrier with colleagues and families, splurge on clothes, or impulsively buy more junk food,” Dr. MacLean noted
Ryder Carroll of the “Bullet Journal Method” states decision fatigue can often lead to decision avoidance. We refuse to deal with a specific decision, because we’re too tired to address it. Therefore, we put it off often causing additional stress and anxiety.
How to combat Decision Fatigue:
- Sleep: In her book The Sleep Revolution Arriana Huffington states we can improve our decision-making with additional sleep. https://www.ted.com/talks/arianna_huffington_how_to_succeed_get_more_sleep?language=en
- Start your day with a “mental download” or “Brain Dump”. If you take just a few minutes to develop a mental inventory of your priorities and ask yourself two questions: Is this task vital? Does it really matter to me or someone in my life?. This may help you prioritize therefore eliminating decisions you may have carried throughout the day. https://www.ama-assn.org/delivering-care/public-health/what-doctors-wish-patients-knew-about-decision-fatigue.
- Finally, eliminate some decisions early in the day. Routines, habits and even streamlining your wardrobe can save brain power by cutting down on the number of decisions you need to make. https://www.inc.com/craig-bloem/this-1-unusual-habit-helped-make-mark-zuckerberg-steve-jobs-dr-dre-successful.html.