Do you struggle to make decisions when you’re exhausted?
Last Tuesday at 9pm, my brain completely fried, I stared at three “urgent” work emails, a permission slip I’d forgotten to sign, and five dinner options on my phone.
My brain had nothing left. Even choosing between chocolate and ice cream would have felt like doing math.
Here’s the 2-minute system that helped me make decisions:
- Will something matter in a month? No? Pick the fastest option and move on. (Exhaustion magnifies small decisions into big ones. This question restores perspective; most choices genuinely don’t matter.)
- Does thinking about it make you immediately exhausted? Skip the reunion. Decline the committee invitation. (Your tired brain isn’t capable of pretense. If your gut is saying no, trust it.)
- Too many options? Cut to your top 2. Still stuck after 30 seconds? Pick the one you thought of first. (Endless comparisons cause decision fatigue. Your initial instinct is usually right.)
- If you’re really exhausted, and it can wait, WAIT. (Some decisions really need a lot of cognitive energy, but some just need to be made. Keep your mental energy for what really matters.)
When you’re tired, “good enough” decisions free you up for the stuff that counts.
These 4 techniques cut my decision paralysis by 80%. If you want more strategies for thriving in the beautiful mess of work and parenthood, subscribe at simplystated.org or follow @SimplyStatedX.
