Have you heard of “decision fatigue”?
Decision fatigue occurs when people feel exhausted from making too many choices. Psychologists have found that, even though we generally like having choices, having to make too many decisions in a short amount of time may lead us to make decisions that are less than optimal. source
This type of fatigue is precisely why I front-load my day with my most important and valuable tasks that require my creativity and energy. I recommend to my coaching clients that they do the same. For example:
Journaling with my morning coffee before I touch my phone and get distracted.
Working out since I know I won’t feel like it later.
Writing my book and articles before my creative mind gets fragmented by meetings and other business tasks.
So, what is the most important task you should do every day but find yourself too tired and worn out to even consider by the end of the day?
How can you move that task to the start of your day when you have the most energy and creativity before decision fatigue saps your willpower?
Make that change, and it will change your life!
Larry Cornett received his Ph.D. in Psychology from Rice University. He spent decades in the Silicon Valley tech industry as a designer, Design leader, Product executive, and startup founder. He eventually left the corporate world to start a coaching practice and now lives in Northern California near Lake Tahoe with his wife and a gigantic Great Dane. He does his best to share advice to help others create their own invincible lives. He's also on Mastodon.
Great comments, as always, Larry. But I will add one from my routine: I attend to the item I will least enjoy early in the day rather than putting it off until the afternoon when I am tired. Getting it out of the way helps brighten up the day :-)