- The Smarter Brain
- Posts
- Decision Fatigue - Why the Mind Wears Out Before the Day Does
Decision Fatigue - Why the Mind Wears Out Before the Day Does
Why Smart Decisions Become Harder as the Day Goes On-and How to Fight Back
Welcome to The Smarter Brain, a curation of thought-provoking ideas and actionable reads to help you build better habits and become more productive.
Happy reading - See you on Wednesday!
Cheers,
The Smarter Brain Team
Estimated Reading Time: 2 mins
3 Ideas for Better Habits
Energy Runs Out
Roy F. Baumeister is a leading social psychologist on self-control.
“Self-control is a limited resource, and when it’s depleted, people become more impulsive.”
The Cost of Mental Effort
Daniel Kahneman, Nobel laureate in economics, reshaped how we understand judgment, bias, and mental fatigue.
“The mental effort needed to maintain self-control is tiring.”
Source: Thinking, Fast and Slow
Too Many Choices
Barry Schwartz is a psychologist who studies how abundance of choice increases stress, regret, and decision fatigue.
“Learning to choose is hard. Learning to choose well is harder.”
The Mental Health App for Every Moment
From guided meditations to one-on-one coaching, our team of clinical experts and trained coaches work together to bring you science-backed care. Explore 1,000+ guided meditations for feeling more relaxed before or after your busy day.
Productivity Tools and Resources
Decision Fatigue and What to Do About It
This article breaks down how too many mental choices can drag down your clarity and offers ways to prioritize and prevent exhaustion before it derails your day. Read more here.
Understanding Decision Fatigue: How Too Many Choices Affect Mental Health
Decision fatigue happens when your brain is overwhelmed by choices throughout the day, leading to impulsivity or mental strain - especially when decision load is high. Read more here.
Decide Once, Execute Daily
Todoist - Reduces repeated decisions by turning priorities into routines and clear next actions.
Remove the Choice
Freedom - Blocks distractions automatically so you don’t have to decide to focus-again and again.
What We're Reading
Research-driven insights on decision-making, self-control, and cognitive depletion—grounded in psychology and behavioral economics.
Subscribe here: Behavioral Scientist Newsletter
Practical insights from behavioral science on how people make choices, why they get exhausted by decisions, and how environments can be designed to support better judgment.
Subscribe here: The Decision Lab Newsletter
Brain Food
Today I Learned: As the day goes on, making many small choices (what to wear, what to eat, which email to answer) can drain your mental energy, making you more likely to procrastinate, avoid decisions, or choose the easiest option rather than the best one. (Source)
Science: Decision fatigue is linked to reduced activity in the brain’s prefrontal cortex - the area responsible for self-control and complex thinking - because repeated decision-making consumes glucose and cognitive resources, lowering the brain’s ability to regulate impulses and evaluate options effectively. (Source)
Have a productive rest of your week,
The Smarter Brain Team
Resource Spotlight
Mastering Focus: Setting Digital Boundaries in an AI-Driven World
Monthly insights reveal how Quinn Mercer helps professionals navigate the relentless demands of digital life and AI tools. Drawing on behavioral psychology, productivity science, and attention management frameworks, this post demonstrates how intentional boundaries can transform constant notifications, AI suggestions, and algorithmic distractions into deliberate, productive engagement. Featured in digital wellness workshops and executive coaching sessions, these strategies guide readers to reclaim transition spaces, batch AI interactions, and structure their day so that focus and creativity thrive.
Energy Management Framework, Choices Streamlined, Clarity Roadmap
Monthly dispatches reveal how Michelle Porter reframes decision fatigue as a cognitive energy problem and offers practical strategies to move from feeling stuck to gaining momentum. Drawing from neuroscience, stress recovery science, and behavior design, this post shows why decision overload drains the brain’s fuel - and how simplifying choices, batching decisions, and building routines help you reclaim focus and progress. Featured in wellness and executive resilience circles, her approach blends actionable tactics like automating daily choices, delegating low‑impact decisions, and using “good‑enough” thinking to protect your mental bandwidth.
Cognitive Limits, Choice Clarity, Mental Renewal
Monthly insights explore how the Oak Health Foundation reframes decision fatigue as a fundamental cognitive challenge - not just a productivity annoyance but a real drain on your mental reserves. Drawing from decades of psychological research and everyday clinical observations, this post uncovers nine key truths psychologists wish everyone understood: from the brain’s finite “decision budget” and how tiny choices sap clarity, to the way fatigue fuels impulsivity and poor habits. Featured in mental health and leadership development circles, these insights are paired with tangible strategies like simplifying routines, limiting options consciously, making high‑impact choices in the morning, and rebuilding mental energy through rest, movement, and breaks.
(Everything in the section above is an ad, book yours here)
How would you rate this newsletter? |
Partner with The Smarter Brain and reach 8,000 professionals' inboxes. Contact us to learn more.
If you enjoy The Smarter Brain, we would really appreciate you spreading the word by sharing the sign up link to a colleague or friend. Thank you!
Collaborate with The Smarter Brain