Five Steps for Fighting Decision Fatigue

The risk of wrong decision is preferable to the terror of indecision.

Maimonides

You may or may not be familiar with the mysterious concept of decision fatigue. If not, you have either never experienced it or rather do not yet understand the emotions you are experiencing. So, what is decision fatigue, and more importantly, how can you fight it?

After an intense work out or working tirelessly on your feet all day, your body feels tired and weak. This can also happen to our minds, when we over work our thought processes and wear down our decision making part of the brain. Introducing… decision fatigue.

Did you know the average person makes 35,000 decisions every single day?With those kinds of statistics, it’s no wonder we can run out of steam. As decision making grows harder as the day goes on.

A study was conducted on Israeli prisoners going before a judge for their parole hearing. It found that prisoners seen in the afternoon were less likely to be granted release compared to those seen in the morning. Decision fatigue had worn the judges ability to make the decision to release the prisoners. Resulting in the quicker and easier decision to continue their imprisonment.

In our every day lives, this can manifest itself as late night online shopping, snacking on unhealthy foods or diving in for seconds of dessert. We may abandon tomorrows meal prep or make snap (often regretted) responses in conversation or disagreements. For many, this can lead to more than a depleted bank balance or a few extra pounds on the scales. Decision fatigue can make us feel totally overwhelmed, tired, irrational and irritable.

For me, I hit “decision capacity” around 5pm. The more questions put to me, and decisions required of me, the more overwhelmed, stressed and emotional I become. And stress isn’t good for anyone! So I have created a few tips and techniques to help fight decision fatigue. Together making a huge difference to my every day life, my mood and stress levels. I hope they help you too.

Tip 1: The third bucket

Neil Pasricha says our time can be divided into three buckets. During a day we work 8 hours and sleep 8 hours, leaving 8 hours to do things that make us fundamentally happy.

So with this in mind I bring to you “The Third Bucket”. Obviously a bucket is a tad OTT, so I use a screw top jar. Simply cut up paper into strips and write ideas of things to do which you love.

This could be days out, activities, hobbies or places to visit. You can even use different coloured paper to categorise your ideas. Making it easy to pick out an idea suitable for the weather or amount of time you have going spare. For example, I use green for days out, yellow for short activities and pink for rainy day ideas. Fold them up individually and pop them into your jar (aka your third bucket).

When those moments arrive, a wonderful window of free time which you don’t know how best to fill, you can turn to your trusty third bucket to make the decision for you. Ensuring you never waste a minute.

Tip 2: The “No Questions After 5pm” Rule

Now you can take this as seriously as you like, it’s pretty unrealistic to avoid all questions. But after a long day at work, your decision making abilities are depleted. Every decision you have to make or question you have to answer is increasing your risk of hitting the decision fatigue wall, making bad decisions or getting frustrated.

Ask your partner, family or house mates to really think before burdening you with trivial dilemmas or unnecessary questions. Ask them to rephrase questions into statements where possible, and to generally be respectful of your mental exhaustion after a long day.

To make this easier, try a little preparation, such as meal planning and daily routine.

Tip 3: Outfit Albums

My favourite tip of all, an absolute life saver.

I’m sure I’m not the only girl who stares at her wardrobe (which is quite literally bursting with clothes) and screams “I have nothing to wear!”. Sound familiar?

Beginning my day grumpy and stressed because of my indecisiveness over what to wear was far from ideal. So I began creating seasonal outfit photo albums on my phone. I took a photo of every complete outfit I put together and liked, giving me clear options and direction in the morning. This tool is also fantastic for holidays. Not only saving precious sunbathing time, but also helps to rein in the packing to a set number of outfits. You’re welcome.

Tip 4: Write Your Daily routine

Routine is highly underrated. We all say we love spontaneity, and to just “go with the flow”, and that’s great, sometimes. But for the most part, routine keeps us on track and stress-levels at a minimum. We are also more likely to stick to a new goal if it becomes a habit part of our daily routine.

Write out your daily routine. A step by step guide just for you, from the moment you wake up, to the moment you go to sleep. If you find this too much to start with, just write out your morning or bed time routine. This can help to limit the number of decisions you have to make and reduce the well known feeling of “have I forgotten something?”.

For more tips on routine and organisation, also read Organisation Tips to Reduce Anxiety.

Tip 5: Big Book of Meals

“What do you fancy for dinner?” answered with “umm i don’t really know, what do you fancy for dinner?” has got to be one of the most annoying conversations in my house! The vast number of options available leads to complete decision-making meltdown.

Giving yourself a list of meals you’ve tried and tested, or even a DIY recipe book of your favourite recipes and your method to making them, will narrow down your options when it comes to writing your weekly meal plan or choosing tonights dinner. When hunger strikes, head for the book!

So that’s it, my top five tips. I hope they have the positive impact on your life that they have on mine, and keep that decision fatigue at bay. Try them out, share your experience with the Sistabliss Tribe by tagging #sistablisstribe and @sistablisstribe on Instagram.