Suffering From Decision Fatigue, A Difficult Net To Get Out Of
When it comes to suffering from decision fatigue, it may be the case for you without you even knowing it. This may seem unlikely, but scientific research has shown that the average person makes about 35,000 decisions each day. That’s an adequate reason to feel exhausted, right?
This constant flow of decisions goes unnoticed because most of them are about trivial issues. “Should I get up or sleep for another five minutes?” “What should I wear today?” “What should I eat for breakfast? I’m already late! ” As you can see, it is not uncommon for people to suffer from decision fatigue.
Social psychologist Roy F. Baumeister is the one who coined the concept of decision fatigue. He clearly warned that “no matter how rational and senior you try to be, you can not make decision after decision without paying a biological price for it”. Exhaustion is the price you pay and as a result you can make many mistakes.
Decision fatigue
All types of fatigue reduce your opportunities and your potential. It makes you want to sleep in the middle of the afternoon without understanding why. You have not really overworked yourself. This is because fatigue accumulates and begins to affect you over time. Stress increases and you become less efficient.
You will probably start to develop an apathetic attitude if you get caught up in this web. Everything does the same for you and you just want to complete your tasks as fast as you can so you do not have to do anything else. You feel that you have no ideas and that you have a brain drop because you have carried out your routine to lead.
The truth is that humans have a limited amount of mental energy. The brain is not a machine that we can keep working constantly without leading to negative consequences. Mistakes, bad decisions, delays, and emotional distress are all the result of exhaustion. So what can you do about it?
Automate
The human brain works much better when it has patterns that it can systematically apply with little variation. Thus, the best thing you can do to avoid decision fatigue is to automate everything you can and follow a routine. The more structured, the better.
But wait now inte does not that make you a robot? Both yes and no. You succeed in doing what you need to do and are more efficient when you follow a set routine. The best thing is that you free the brain from most unpleasant tasks and leave room for creativity and higher thinking to flourish.
What can you automate? For example, Barack Obama decided in advance what attire he would wear to all gala events over seven years. Angela Merkel has a list of complete equipment ready and does not have to waste time finding something to wear. You can start by deciding what to eat each day, and so on. The idea is to reduce the number of daily decisions.
Is it boring to plan everything in advance and have a fixed routine? You’re wrong if you think so. In fact, studies show that those who plan their routine and stick to it are happier. Specifically, they do not have to suffer from decision fatigue.
Other keys to avoid suffering from decision fatigue
Those who have studied the subject recommend that you make the most important decisions at the beginning of the day. This is because it is the time when your brain has the most energy and also when it is most awake. So avoid making relevant decisions at the end of the day. The same goes for tasks, so do the most difficult ones first.
In short, reserve the other half of the day for anything that is not particularly demanding. This not only helps you become more efficient but also affects your mood. In other words, it helps you feel more efficient, less exhausted and more focused.
Another key to avoiding decision fatigue is to block anything that may distract you, such as reading your messages. Finally, set aside a few hours each day to take care of the things that are not overly demanding but that may increase the stimuli you are exposed to. In this way, you save yourself the hassle of having to make many small decisions.
