The concept of “decision fatigue” is that you only have so much decision capacity in your “tank,” and as you make decisions you run low and then empty.
Complete bunk. Horse-hooey. This is fodder to feed your inner whiner and excuse proliferator.
You are making decisions all day, every day. What you focus your eyes on. What you do with your hands. What to do next. Shifting in your seat. Flipping pages and channels and jumping between sites. You saw the headline or picture for this article and decided to look at it more. From the time you open your eyes in the morning until you drift off into sleepy land you are making decisions. No one comes to the end of the day and fails to make another few decisions.
I’ll grant you that some decisions are much more difficult. Some decisions have a higher mental cost or consequence factor.
Also, it’s true that our energy levels fluctuate through the day. You have more energy for thinking and careful analysis at some times, and less at others.
When you find that you’re struggling to make a particular decision, it’s something other than your “decision capacity tank.” It’s more likely
- You’re fearful of making this decision because of the consequences.
- You aren’t confident of your analysis, or would prefer to have more information.
- You prefer that someone else had responsibility to make the decision.
- You lack the self-confidence to make the decision that you know needs to be made.
If you’re simply physically tired and not at your best, then be honest with others and yourself, and push that decision to a time when you’re energy level is more appropriate.
But don’t say, “My decision capacity tank is empty.” That tells people that you’re “full” of something else.
