Decision Fatigue often results in poor choices. It’s the end of a busy day, your brain is tired of making decisions, so it becomes lazy and impulsive.
Photo by Vladislav Babienko via unsplash.com
But, decision fatigue can be subtle. Unlike running a marathon until you are physically exhausted, decision fatigue mentally drains you until you are disconnected from your core values.
Whether you are a CEO, an athlete, a parent or retired—nobody is exempt. Our brains get tired because they work non stop. Getting enough sleep and making sure you have proper glucose levels in your brain are helpful strategies. But, when it comes to ensuring your important decisions will be aligned to your core values on a daily basis—meditation is one of our greatest tools.
Meditation not only offers a reboot for the brain, it restructures it. The theory of neuroplasticity states that you can re-wire your neural connections in any way that you desire. You can unplug from the circus wheel of life and find inner calm, shrinking the amygdala —the part of the brain that is quick to panic during states of distress.
The foundational teaching used to describe authentic meditation is called “yogas citta vritti nirodha.”
According to the Yoga Sutras 1:2 this translates to:
Yoga: Union/Meditative absorption
Citta: Stuff in your mind
Vrittis: To turn
Nirodah: To calm, quiet and even stop
This means that yoga is what happens when the stuff in your mind, that is always turning, quiets down and/or stops. Simply put, it pauses a panicky brain.
In this teaching, yoga is used as a noun. It is the result of getting your mind and body to settle down and be quiet. Meditation quickly reveals mental patterns or conditionings-- the stuff in your head that is continually “turning.” What if the turning quieted down? What if your not so helpful thoughts stopped all together?
What if you had moments of restful alertness where you could “step outside" of your mental constructs and for once not identify with them? What if, instead, you could see them for what they are: twirling and turning conditions of a “limited nature.” What if you could then step back into life with a bigger view or perspective along with fresh and new possibilities accompanied with a stronger will power?
All decisions deplete mental energy to a certain degree. Deciding what to wear, which way to drive, what to eat for dinner, how to answer a text, where to take your next vacation, what kind of action to take in a time of conflict, how to be a better parent, how to spend money more wisely, and on and on. These are just daily typical decisions. These are the easy ones compared to life’s surprise interruptions. The challenges that you were not expecting, but are now forced to solve.
Studies show that by 4:00 p.m. our will power and self-control are at their lowest. By early evening we are more susceptible to irrational decisions or just avoiding life altogether.
How To Avoid Decision Fatigue:
Embrace a daily meditation practice
Aim to make your toughest decisions of the day in the morning from 9:00-12:00 p.m.
Get plenty of sleep every night
Mind your glucose levels. Don’t allow yourself to get “hangry.”
If these tips feel impossible or unrealistic know that, just by reading this and informing yourself, you have already taken the first step. Changes happen over time and there are no quick fixes. There is a lot of knowledge out there and finding the kind that works for you and putting it into action will create effects you would have never imagined.
Gandhi once said: “Strength does not come from physical strength but indomitable will.” The strength needed to move mountains or simply get out of bed in the morning comes from will power. Will power comes from the ability to unplug, rest, reboot and recalibrate, so that you can stay steadfast and be your best self. The goal is to do all this without ever having to compromise your core values.
A Yoga Unplugged collaboration - written by Jennifer Reuter, edited by Sarah Burchard