Do this or do that? Eat this or drink that? What to say, what to have? What to buy and where to sell?
We make thousands of decisions every day. No matter our roles and jobs, we are constantly making decisions each day. For people doing regular jobs and business owners, founders or CEOs, it is a common problem they face in their own ways. So, knowing how to manage decision fatigue is one of the crucial things to lead a better life and a successful business. A lot of people are suffering from decision fatigue, but they don’t even know that they are going through it.
So, in this article, I will try to make you aware of the decision fatigue you might be suffering from. I will explain how you can identify your decision fatigue and what you can do to manage it.
What is Decision Fatigue?
Decision fatigue is the condition when after making a lot of decisions in the day we physically and cognitively get tired and deplete our capacity to make any more decisions. It is based on the concept that says that we have a limited capacity to make decisions each day. As you make decisions this capacity continues to get depleted. With each decision you make you get more and more tired and can only replenish this capacity after taking some rest or sleeping.
Feeling decision fatigue is normal but when we feel this way for a long period, it becomes a problem. When we are chronically affected by this fatigue our ability to make sound decisions gets weaker and weaker. And we find ourselves stuck in a rut. To be able to manage and avoid decision fatigue, it is important to understand the reasons behind it and then the ways in which we can solve it.
Reasons for Decision Fatigue:
1. Making a lot of decisions each day:
When we are making a lot of decisions every day, we are bound to feel fatigued after a long day. As we make decisions, even the small ones, we deplete our levels of decision-making capacity. So, in this scenario, it is important to know which decisions to prioritize first in the day.
2. Not having complete information:
When we are required to make decisions with little information, we can feel uncertain about our choices. This can cause us to overthink a lot and mentally and physically drain our energy. When we make these decisions with uncertainty frequently, we get fatigued quickly.
3. Going through a tough situation in life:
This is also an important reason that leads to decision fatigue. When we are going through some kind of crisis in our lives, making even small decisions becomes burdensome. Our decision-making capacity gets highly affected, and we find ourselves in a rut not being able to make sound decisions.
4. You are trying to perfect everything:
Another noteworthy reason for decision fatigue is perfectionism. When we are perfectionists, we want to choose and decide everything in our lives and businesses. From the smallest details to big choices, we want to make everything perfect. This can quickly wear us out and lead us to make irrational decisions.
5. Most decisions you make have some type of consequence:
When the decisions we make have consequences on not only our lives but other people as well, we feel immense pressure and responsibility while decisions. When we regularly make these decisions that will impact other people and society, our capacity to make good decisions depletes and we become vulnerable to make some not-so-good decisions. So, it becomes even more important for people in these jobs and positions to take adequate rest and replenish their decision-making levels.
Signs and Symptoms of Decision Fatigue:
It can become easier to understand decision fatigue if one understands its signs and symptoms. I have explained some of these signs below:
1. Making irrational and impulsive decisions:
When we are suffering from decision fatigue, we make decisions that are not that well thought out. We make impulsive decisions, only thinking about the present and not considering the future consequences. Like spending money on things that you know you would regret buying.
We can also make some irrational and biased decisions. This means that when we are decision-fatigued, our brain wants to do the easier thing and rely on our habits. When we make decisions out of habit, we are likely to make decisions that are based on our unconscious biases. And these decisions can be irrational and biased.
2. Procrastinating:
One of the most seen signs of decision fatigue is not able to make any more decisions. When we are feeling decision fatigue we avoid making any more decisions, we delay and delay making a choice until the very last moment. We find ourselves procrastinating to make mundane decisions as well and this becomes a problem quite soon.
3. Feeling mentally and physically tired:
An obvious sign of decision fatigue is feeling emotionally, mentally, and physically very tired. After making so many decisions each day we just feel super tired. It becomes difficult to choose or pick things after a while.
4. Difficulty in expressing yourself:
During the stages when we are highly fatigued, we can have trouble expressing ourselves. It can become difficult to communicate and send the right message to the listener. You things in your head but you feel just too tired to explain it to the other person.
5. Feeling Angry or irritated:
When we are suffering from decision fatigue, we can become very irritable and angry. Even the small noises or little inconveniences can make us feel irritated.
How to manage Decision Fatigue:
To deal with these signs and symptoms we need to manage our decision fatigue. We need to find ways to replenish our decision-making capacity tanks and avoid making it go completely depleted. The six ways in which you can manage your decision fatigue are given below:
1. Delegate your decisions:
One of the ways to deal with decision fatigue is by delegating your tasks. When we are making all the decisions by ourselves, we can get fatigued pretty quickly. So, it is important to delegate and let other people make decisions for you. Trust other people to make decisions for yourself and focus on making decisions that are more important to you.
2. Have less choices:
Another way to not feel decision fatigue is by cutting down the number of choices you have. Like how some people wear the same type of clothes every day buy clothes of the same colour each time or eat the same breakfast every day. You don’t have to go to that extreme but making a list of things you want before going to the market or deciding in advance what you may want to have, can help in improving decision fatigue.
3. Schedule tasks for a longer time span:
For some people, making a daily or weekly timetable or to-do list making can be draining. Thus, try to set goals you want to achieve for a longer time. Making 15-day/monthly/quarterly plans and goals can help.
4. Sleep:
Underrated but an essential way to get rid of decision fatigue is by taking adequate sleep. Lack of sleep leads to mental and physical fatigue making one tired to even think about making a decision. So, sleeping and waking up on time is an important thing to deal with decision fatigue.
5. Make lists and write things down:
One way to deal with decision fatigue is by writing things down. When you write down what is important to you, you don’t have to keep it in your brain, and you make space to make decisions. So, this is what was all about decision fatigue.
Also read Creative Burnout: How Content Writers and Other Creatives Can Survive in the World of Deadlines.
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