Make 3 Great Decisions a Day
In the wise words of billionaire Jeff Bazo, he lives under the assumption that he only makes 3 great decisions a day, The average person makes roughly 35,000 remotely conscious decisions each day and all of them carry a good or bad consequence or sequence of events.
Life can seem stressful at times and the majority gets caught up or stressed out on certain decisions whether it’s as simple as what to eat for breakfast or which blue dress should wear today. Time and energy on meaningless things can prevent you from putting energy into the necessary decisions.
Warren Buffet says he makes 3 good decisions a year, Some things work for people so finding out what deserves your attention and energy and how much you have to give is a start. If it works for these multi-millionaires then it must retain some actual truth.
Dress Code
Deciding trivial things like what to wear can take a lot of our time in the morning, and the consequence of that is we have less brainpower later in the day for important tasks while we’re working or running a business.
Keeping it simple in the mornings has been adopted by many people including Steve Jobs, the billionaire owner and creator of the Apple iPhone. Jobs makes it well known that he believes your mental efforts should be channelled elsewhere and although you may think he is rich enough to wear whatever he wants and even pay someone to pick out his outfits, he doesn’t, he prioritises and channels his efforts elsewhere.
This explains his wardrobe evolution from 2008, wearing a black turtle neck and blue jeans to now… a black turtle neck and blue jeans. Saving time and effort on things that aren’t necessarily important for those whose profession doesn’t revolve around style, should be removed from our mental and daily routine by keeping it simple, you don’t necessarily have to go to the extent of Steve Jobs jeans and turtle neck but just having options that can be paired easily together won’t create much mental fatigue.
Understanding Decision Fatigue
Decision fatigue can be simply defined as the ‘deterioration of quality decisions made by an individual after a long session of decision making’. As for everything we do from asking ourselves “Shall I wear my black tie or my brown tie” or “What shall I have for my tea” we are constantly making decisions for ourselves.
It has become such an innate thing that we may not notice how many things we go back and forth upon on a daily basis. This can drain us and use up a lot of mental energy that could be used elsewhere, such as in our profession and business. As discussed about only getting 3 great decisions a day, they should not be wasted on which tie should you buy but later on in the day during an important meeting or while you’re working towards your goals.
Understanding that if you want to be more productive and then simplifying things and cutting corners is an effective way to achieve it, it won’t just make you more productive but will remove trivial stresses that you place on yourself. It must be effective as it was not only adopted by Steve Jobs but also by Mark Zuckerberg, Barack Obama, and Albert Einstein.
Circadian Rhythms & Decision-Making
Since emotion and regulatory control are extremely important when it comes to productivity and decision-making, circadian fluctuations can influence outcomes in your decision-making although it is not usually thought or spoken about. There is evidence that circadian synchrony effects can fuel performance at optimal vs. non-optimal times of day depending on your chronotype.
This necessarily means that our internal clock is governed by circadian rhythms, which in turn can have a significant impact on our ability to make these great decisions. Research has shown that most people experience an ebb and flow in their cognitive abilities throughout the day suggesting you’re on top form in the mornings, dip during the afternoon, and then there’s a possibility you resurge in the early evening.
Understanding your circadian rhythm means that you’re aware of when you on your best mental and physical capability, meaning you should make all the important business decisions in the morning, handle minor tasks during the afternoon, etc, This daily cycle can impact our decision-making process therefore aligning critical decisions with your cognitive peak will ensure your priorities are in the right place and can be a serious game change in business.
Prioritising Key Decisions
In a very competitive world of business at the moment, it can become overwhelming and intimidating at times. You have to ensure you maintain 100 different things while you want to grow and learn more therefore your priorities can be here, there, and everywhere. It arguably wastes more time starting loads of things rather than sticking to one task and finishing it before moving on to the next.
Therefore the art of prioritisation is crucial if you want to manage decision fatigue effectively. Not all decisions are equal as some are more important than others, so you must make the most of the optimal performance time you are given, so using that time to identify and elevate consequential and important business choices is necessary.
Categorising which decisions are more important than others may involve their impact, urgency, and alignment with your long-term goals. Reserving those decisions for a time when your mental energy is at its optimal to ensure that the best judgment is applied to where it matters the most. This can reduce a lot of risk factors that come into place and instill confidence in yourself. This is imperative when making one of the 3 great decisions of the day.
The Role of Rest and Recovery
Knowing how to recharge your batteries is an understated cure for decision fatigue. It’s important to listen to your body if you push yourself too far it can be hard to fall back down the starting line. Think of it more as if are an athlete and you’ve been training all day, you can’t go on to train again later that day you need to allow yourself a break and rejuvenate.
Studies have consistently shown that even taking short breaks such as the Pomodoro technique, practising mindfulness, and engaging in relaxation techniques can recharge and realign your thoughts and priorities. Incorporating regular periods of rest or breaks in between work can help maintain mental clarity and increase your chances of your decision-making being great.
Overall
In a world where choices and demand are ceaseless, recognising your own limitations of your decision-making capacity is a huge step towards a greater income.
By understanding the influences and effects of decision fatigue and circadian rhythms you will be able to align important choices within your cognitive peaks and how to preserve those great decisions for the important moments in life.
Therefore, keep it simple, rest well, and understand when you are performing at your optimum levels to take your life to the next level.
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