You make about 35,000 choices each day. About 230 of those are only on food.

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It would be wondrous if your capacity to make decisions were a never-ending resource. Sadly, that is not the case. Your ability to make decisions is like a phone battery. It has a finite amount of power and energy. Bad decisions happen when you go beyond that range, and a clear decision becomes blurry. You become mentally exhausted and unable to make high-quality decisions. Like with everything, when you overuse a resource given my nature, you pay a biological price.

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The busiest CEOs, most revolutionary thinkers, and extreme minimalists know about this phenomenon called decision fatigue. They try to pair down as many insignificant decisions they make. Have you ever wondered why Steve Jobs always wore a black turtle neck, Mark Zuckerburg always wore a gray shirt, and Albert Einstein posed in a gray suit? Globally-known leaders know that one outfit will not change the world. However, their decisions will. Successful people observe the patterns in their life and automate what is insignificant. They outsource unimportant decisions to habits. Habits take off the mental energy it takes to make choices. Using the power of habits, they have more energy and willpower to make the right decisions necessary to make world-changing advancements.

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The process of making better decisions is simple. Observe the daily tasks and decisions you execute regularly. Simplify them and automate them so you do not have to think about them. Wear the same shoes, make the same breakfast, shop for the same clothes, or order the same coffee. When you notice which decisions are not high-quality, you can delegate or outsource those. Everyone’s life is already complicated as it is. Simplify, and redistribute your energy to things that matter. Making fewer decisions wastes less time, saves brainpower, and makes you feel good.

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References:

• Haltiwanger, J. (2014, November 14). The Science Of Simplicity: Why Successful People Wear The Same Thing Every Day. Elite Daily. Retrieved from elitedaily.com/money/science-simplicity-successful-people-wear-thing-every-day/849141
• Yeong, D. (n.d.). Decision Minimalism: Productivity Hack of Steve Jobs & Mark Zuckerberg | Dean Yeong. Dean Yeong. Retrieved from deanyeong.com/decision-minimalism/
• Bloem, C. (2020, February 6). Why Successful People Wear the Same Thing Every Day. Inc.com. Retrieved from inc.com/craig-bloem/this-1-unusual-habit-helped-make-mark-zuckerberg-steve-jobs-dr-dre-successful.html
• Hoomans, D. J. (n.d.). 35,000 Decisions: The Great Choices of Strategic Leaders. Retrieved from go.roberts.edu/leadingedge/the-great-choices-of-strategic-leaders