9. Decision Fatigue

Hi everyone, this is Reza Mehman, and you’re listening to the ninth episode of the Project Mindset podcast. Today’s topic is decision fatigue. Roughly translated, it means being tired of making decisions. And I’ve actually had to deal with this issue from time to time. Relatively unintentionally. I’d say I’m generally a decisive person. However, there are situations, or even entire days, when I’m so exhausted that I can’t make any real decisions at all.

These don’t have to be big decisions. It starts with really small ones. And maybe you’ll recognize yourself in the following examples, where you’ve also realized that even though it’s a simple decision, you just didn’t have the energy to make the right one. It can start in the morning, for example: what should I even wear today? A super simple decision, but there were actually days when just making the decision was incredibly frustrating.

And based on my energy level, I couldn’t really make a decision. Or even what kind of sport should I do? Should I even do any sport at all? Just deciding whether to exercise or simply lie on the couch was sometimes difficult. And interestingly, I recently ran into a friend of mine. We chatted a bit about making decisions. And he actually said that after particularly long and tiring workdays, he’s sometimes so exhausted that even he can’t answer simple questions anymore.

When even small decisions are difficult

So he gave the example of how his wife asked him one evening, “What should we have for dinner?” He was so exhausted, completely stumped, that he didn’t have an answer and just wanted to say, “Ugh, please decide for me, I really have no idea.” So I think the concept—if you’ve ever had this experience, I don’t think you’re alone, at least it happens to me every now and then. And I would actually say that I usually try to be full of energy.

But if your energy level is a bit low, you can very quickly fall into a state of decision fatigue. So the crucial question I want to answer today is: what can you actually do to avoid this kind of decision fatigue? I think there’s one definite answer: you should try to keep your energy level relatively high as much as possible.

What I mean by that is that, and I personally believe this, the more decisions you have to make in a day, the more exhausted you are at the end of the day. I see certain parallels to sports, and if you’ve ever done really intense exercise, you know at some point that you can’t run another lap or do another repetition because your muscles or your body are simply completely worn out and just need to relax a bit.

Three personal aids against decision fatigue

And I think it’s pretty much the same with the brain. There are situations, or simply days, where you’ve had to make so many decisions that you’re completely exhausted by the end of the day. How do I avoid that? I’ve discovered three tools that work really well for me, and I hope they’ll help you too. Let’s go through them. The first tool I like to use is setting up very simple routines to preemptively avoid having to make decisions.

What I mean is, I have a wardrobe where the clothes all look relatively similar, typically a black T-shirt or shirts in the same style. And with this routine of saying, “Hey, I’ll just take one of these things out,” I’m already taking the decision away from myself, saying, “They all look the same anyway, it doesn’t matter which one I reach into.” Or another routine is my breakfast routine. I’ve been eating the same thing for years—you can ask my wife—because I don’t want to have to decide every day what to eat, or what my workout routine will be like.

Plan routines in advance

Once a week, I plan my routine for the following week, and then I stick to it exactly as planned. I don’t spend time wondering where to exercise, what kind of exercise to do, or whether to do strength or endurance training. No, I plan my routine in advance and then follow through with it. The second tool I like to use is commitment. I’ve simplified certain decisions for myself by committing to specific activities.

Conscious fundamental decisions in everyday life

That means, for example, I don’t drink alcohol during the week. I tell myself, hey, no alcohol on weekdays, only on weekends. So if I ever have to decide, “Ugh, should I have a beer with friends today?” or whatever, no, I won’t. I only drink that kind of thing on weekends, so that decision is already taken care of. Another thing I like to do is generally avoid dessert. I mean, I skip sweets after meals because a) I want to watch my weight, and b) I don’t want to make decisions that might leave me feeling a bit guilty afterward, which also drains my energy.

That means I only commit to eating dessert, for example, only at family gatherings. This already eliminates a lot of decisions, and I maintain a relatively high energy level throughout the week. What really drains my energy level is notifications. I don’t just mean notifications on my phone, but general news, general information, too much external information. For me, it starts with turning off almost all notifications on my phone except for phone calls.

Notifications as constant triggers for decision-making.

Why? Just think about how many WhatsApp messages you get every day, or voice messages, iMessages, notifications from various apps. Each time, you’re essentially making a new decision: do I look at it or not, open it or not, read it or not? And I think that drains so much energy that it’s better to simply let through only the most important notifications. For example, if someone calls and it’s truly urgent, then answer it.

I think this constant availability is a real energy drain. Another thing, which I’ve talked about before in a different context, is regularly checking for updates. Whether it’s news, stock prices, or whatever. I simply avoid doing that because it alone drains so much energy that you can really save it to maintain a high energy level throughout the day. One idea, which isn’t exactly a tool, but one I like to use regarding energy levels and decision fatigue, is that when I notice myself slipping into that mode, I consciously remind myself, “Wow, my energy level is really low right now, I’m having a really hard time making decisions.”

Explain your exhaustion to those around you

The first thing I do when I have thoughts like that is actually to let my family and friends know, in this case, for example, my wife. “Hey, wow, I’m so exhausted and drained right now, I can’t make a decision. So, what we’re having for dinner, or whether we’re doing this or that, please decide.” And I think it’s always really good and very transparent to communicate things like that. “I’m so exhausted right now, please don’t take it personally or be upset, just decide.” This also avoids a lot of stress with partners and friends, so to speak, if you’re just super transparent.

If it does come down to an important decision that needs to be made together with your partner, you can always say, “Hey, I need another hour,” “I always need a nap,” or “I want to make the decision tomorrow.” So, transparency here is incredibly beneficial in a relationship. To summarize briefly, the things I like to use when I want to keep my energy levels up and avoid getting into decision fatigue mode are creating a routine, like a weekly meal plan or a schedule for what I’m going to wear the next day.

Fewer new decisions thanks to established habits.

And once I have my routine, I typically make fewer decisions and just stick to it. Or I commit to certain decisions in advance. For example, I generally don’t eat dessert, or I don’t drink alcohol during the week, or I make sure to read at least 20 pages of a book every day, so I don’t have to decide every day whether or not I’ll actually read the book. The third thing was to eliminate as many distractions as possible. These days, everyone has notifications for everything on their phone.

It’s best to turn off all your calls, except for the really important ones, like phone calls. And even then, if someone only texts, it can’t be as important or urgent as if they were calling. Don’t constantly check the news, weather, your stock portfolio, and so on. That just drains your energy all day. And lastly, if you do happen to slip into that mode where you realize you’re experiencing decision fatigue, remind yourself that you’re in that state.

That means, communicate it to a partner or friends as well. Hey, I’m having trouble making a decision right now. Please decide for me. It’s not meant to be mean at all, I’m just really exhausted. So, folks, I hope you found this topic helpful today: Decision Fatigue. I think it affects quite a few people. I have to admit, as I said at the beginning, I’m usually decisive, but I do have days where I’m just completely drained and can’t or don’t want to decide.

Putting one’s own experiences into perspective

And when I take these tools and this mindset to heart, I simply cope better with the situation. As always, a short episode. I hope you enjoyed the content. At least you took something away from it. If so, please leave me a review, subscribe to the channel, and tell your friends and acquaintances about it. That’s the only way the channel can continue to grow. As always, if you have questions, feedback, or would like to talk to me personally, just write to me at helloatprojectmindset.de.

Alright everyone, have a great day! See you next week, and don’t forget, mindset is everything. Bye!