Decision Fatigue Impacts Your Business
Decision Fatigue Impacts Your Business in 4 Ways – Part 1
Decision fatigue impacts your business in sneaky ways.
Did you know that from the time we wake up until the time we fall asleep, the average person makes 35,000 decisions?
Some decisions are as trivial as which pair of shoes to wear or what to eat for breakfast.
Other decisions have greater consequences or impact on your company’s future, like how you are going to handle a production crisis or a serious employee issue.
Coming up with viable solutions to this constant barrage of problems requires significant mental energy from the entrepreneur. When it happens continuously throughout the day, it takes its toll on your time management, energy and will power.
They Call This Decision Fatigue
Yes, there actually is a name for this mental state we find ourselves in throughout the day. You may not consciously feel tired, but low mental energy makes it harder to tackle each decision. Decision fatigue applies to all the decisions you have to make, not just the hard ones.
Decision fatigue impacts your business like compounding interest (but not in a good way). The more decisions you are faced with, the more difficult it becomes exponentially to identify solutions. So you naturally look for shortcuts—and end up making reckless, impulsive decisions or no decision at all—all of which make the problems bigger in the long run.
What Causes Decision Fatigue?
Decision fatigue is caused by a combination of factors, each unique to the individual. The extent to which you feel decision fatigue depends on your stress level, how well you handle stress, the number of decisions you have to make in a given day, and the seriousness of those decisions.
When most people are faced with multiple difficult decisions, the ability to make good ones diminishes as the day goes on.
Decision fatigue impacts your business through if you have mental and physical symptoms and through time management, and team management choices you make
Decision Fatigue Symptoms:
If you’re faced with a number of decisions during the day, you may experience some of the following symptoms:
- You feel physically or mentally tired
- You experience “brain fog”
- You feel more and more drained as the day goes on
How Does Decision Fatigue Affect Your Time Management & Team Management Choices?
Decision fatigue affects your time management abilities because you aren’t taking care of the problem in an efficient time frame. It also affects your team who ultimately has to carry out your decisions.
Here’s how most business owners make decisions when suffering from decision fatigue:
• Procrastination
You put it off and put it off. Eventually you do make a decision, but often have to deal with the aftermath because the decision was made too late.
• Avoidance
You hope that if you ignore the problem, it will go away on its own so you don’t have to deal with it.
• Impulsivity
You make rash decisions without giving the options enough consideration, or make indifferent decisions (the preschooler in all of us emerges: “eeny meeny, miny, moe..”).
• Indecision
You experience decision paralysis, and just say no because that is the easier answer.
Obviously, none of these actions work well for the business owner when they are suffering from decision fatigue. But there are productive things you can do. Stay tuned for next month’s blog post, which will address the solution to decision fatigue and give you several tools and tips to combat it.
Do you have questions about the role an Online Business Manager or virtual COO plays in your business? (I’ll give you a hint…we are one of the ways to alleviate decision fatigue!) If so, please book a call with us!
Top 3 Business System Secrets Your Business Needs to Thrive
You deserve to have a business that thrives.
Discover the top three secrets to setting up a system and process that will allow your business to scale.
Thanks for subscribing! Please check your email for further instructions.
Experienced online entrepreneurs are often stressed and exhausted because they are juggling everything in the business. I partner with owners to get results by managing operations.
Bottlenecks are busted so they have the energy to focus on growth.
Additional Helpful Tips
Grow Your Business. Take Back Your Life.
Certified Online Business Manager for Experienced Entrepreneurs Who Want a Strong Business. This could also be where you add your one-liner.
You deserve to have a business that thrives.
Thanks for subscribing! Please check your email for further instructions.