Research on decision fatigue shows that as the day goes on, your judgment gets measurably worse.
You take shortcuts. You default to the easy answer. You say yes when you meant to say no.
All those decisions are exhausting. By the time you get to the decisions that matter, you have nothing left. And you can’t even act on the decisions you already made because your executive function is depleted.
Think of your executive function fuel tank like money. You want to spend it in the highest leverage places. You don’t want to spend hundreds of dollars on gum and then not be able to afford dinner.
The key to preserving your energy and executive function bandwidth is to limit decisions wherever possible.
Every decision you eliminate becomes fuel for the decisions that really matter.
3 Ways to Eliminate Decisions
The best way to tame decision fatigue is to eliminate decisions. Here are 3 ways to do that:
(1) Standardize
Many restaurants have a standing special dish for each day of the week. It’s the standard operating procedure. When I was growing up, Thursday night was pizza night. My mom continues that standard to this day. She also tends to eat the same thing for breakfast every day and the same thing for lunch. This eliminates many decisions about what to eat.
If you don’t want to do this for every meal, try doing it for at least some meals. At a bare minimum, I standardize my breakfast, because morning decisions cost more. If eating the same thing every day feels too monotonous, have a few go-to options and put them in rotation tied to different days of the week.
You can also do this with other daily decisions. I have a set outfit for my workouts and my post-workout attire for each day of the week. This eliminates the decision fatigue that comes from standing in front of the closet wondering what to wear.
The more you can standardize the small decisions of your day, the more energy you’ll free up for bigger decisions.
(2) Automate
Many decisions can be eliminated through automation.
Think about what happens when you unload your dishwasher: generally you don’t decide where to put the dishes because they already have a place. You’re in pure execution mode.
On the other hand, when things don’t have a place to live, you must expend decision energy to decide where to put them.
When you put something in its place, you’re following an unwritten rule that says “this item always goes here.” You can create these types of rules for other parts of your life.
My Fitness First ritual is one of the main ways I automate decisions. I don’t decide whether to workout, or when to workout. It’s anchored in my day as the first activity. I typically wake up at the same time every day so I don’t have to decide this new each day.
Create designated spots for different types of work you do. This will eliminate the decisions about where to go and what to do.
(3) Outsource
You don’t need to decide everything. Delegate some decisions to other people — and commit yourself to abiding by their decisions.
When I have a trainer or coach programming my workouts, I tend to have more energy for my workout and get less fatigued from it, because I’m not exhausted from planning for myself.
If you run a business and have an assistant, empower your assistant with the authority to make mundane daily decisions so you can focus on bigger picture strategic issues.
Instead of taking charge of all of your plans, let your friends or partner decide what to do, where to go, and what to eat.
Giving up the need for control can help you reclaim a lot of energy.
Love it? Hate it? What do you think? Don't hold back...