Decisions, decisions, so many decisions.

How many decisions would you estimate that you make in a day?

Take a second, and think about.

Got a # in mind?

Shout out your number.

I was asked this question a few years ago.

My estimated number was 2,000.

I was way off.

The answer is….

Wait for it…..

35,000.

Yes.

On average, a person will make 35,000 decisions in one single day.

This eye opening statistic was shared with me a number of years ago by a trusted professional colleague, The Phone Lady. It has stayed with me ever since.

It sounds outrageous I know, but when you start to break it down from the moment you wake up, you realize how quickly decisions accumulate.

Decision #1: To press the snooze button or not.

Yes, that little nagging alarm clock presents you with a decision.

35,000 is a lot of decisions.

I’m sharing this tidbit to add some perspective to this topic.

We make a lot of decisions.

Granted, not all decisions are created equal. Some require us to dig deeper into our decision making skill reservoir than others. Some decisions have bigger consequences than others. Some decisions are more timely or complicated.

So, at this point in your reading you may be asking yourself, “What’s this all about?”

I’d like to share with you a wisdom nugget that was planted in my mind early in my career, and it has served me well for at least two decades. Like many wisdom nuggets, I don’t recall where or when it flowed to me, but I know with full certainty it’s been at the forefront of many decisions in my life.

Pun intended.

Here it is…..

“Make a decision, when you have a decision to make.”

I know, it sounds somewhat arbitrary, yet intuitive. But I assure you its simplicity is buried in the rubble of its complexity. We have to peel the layers back to reveal its simple message.

Think about this……

How many times have we made a decision about something before there was even a ‘decision’ to make?

A job prospect, perhaps? I know that’s a common one.

I’ve honestly lost count of how many times I have seen someone talk themselves out of accepting a job before they have even applied for it.

Read that again.

They have talked themselves out of accepting a job they have not yet applied for.

Let’s unpack this loaded statement.

We permit variables to sneak their way in to our consciousness, and wreak havoc on our confidence, and rational thought. Those sneaky intruders make us overthink every little aspect of something before these aspects become remotely relevant.

We get tangled up in the cobwebs of information that do not serve any purpose nor do they belong at that particular point of the decision making process.

Yes, arguably they are relevant, but not at that point.

Case in point….Deciding to not accept a job before you have even applied for it.

Variables such as; having to change your morning commute, uncertainty about vacation allowance and sick leave benefits, etc, all stand at irrational attention with their picket signs and hold up residence in this friendly mental space of new opportunity. No looming strike threat here. Just new opportunities knocking.

Open the door. Invite it in. Explore it. Learn from it. Grow with it.

And then decide.

Make a decision when you have a decision to make.

It’s self sabotaging to overload our mind with details that are not even relevant at this point of the decision making process. Yet somehow, and without invitation, these little intruders overwhelm our decision making, and constrain us. Make us stop.

These seemingly harmless intruders – often disguised as rational and decisive thoughts – coerce us to retreat back into the safety of our familiar. Our certainty. Our present tense.

I’ve seen someone bail out on a first date because the person lived 20 minutes away, and the commute would be a bit of a hassle.

WOW. Their ‘person’ could have been on the other side of that 20 minute commute. And now, they’ll never know.

They already decided on the wrong side of the decision. The real decision had not even been presented yet.

Careers, relationships, life changing moments have all been realized on the other side of decision.

We owe it to ourselves to at least take a step forward.

The depth of regret is so much deeper with the stuff we’ve never done. Never tried.

So, my advice to friends who are stuck in decision making abyss – that never ending loop of decision fatigue – just take a moment.

And consider inserting this mantra into the mental chatter loop – “make a decision, when you have a decision to make.”

If there is a new job you’re interested in, apply for it. If you’re unsure about that first date, go on it. Keep the nagging mental intruders on the sidelines.

At least for now.

And make the decision when you actually have a decision to make.

Your choice.

You decide.

With gratitude,