According to some theorists, it could be. As parents and homeschoolers, we need every ounce of energy we have, so squandering our energy on making trivial decisions is not something we willingly do. However, according to some theorists, we are doing just that, otherwise known as "decision fatigue."
Did you know that the average person makes 35,000 decisions in a single day? That sounds unbelievable, doesn't it? 35,000 decisions in one day! And I bet, as homeschoolers, we make even more.
After making so many decisions throughout our day, we begin to experience decision fatigue. When decision fatigue kicks in, the quality of our decisions starts to plummet. Whether we are making little or big decisions is irrelevant; what matters is that we are making decisions.
The Steve Job’s Strategy
You probably know that Steve Jobs wore black T-shirts because he didn't want to waste his energy deciding what to wear each day.
He wanted to save his decision-making energy for the things that really mattered, such as should the Apple logo face up or down on the back of the computer, or should Apple come out with a new iPhone in one year or two years?
And Mark Zuckerberg wears grey T-shirts.
As women, I'm not sure if we can fathom wearing the same color shirt every day, but we can take stock of where our energy is going and preserve more of it for the important decisions we'll need to make.
The Important Decisions
Maybe you are considering whether or not to enroll your daughter in a swimming class during the family dinnertime, or whether or not your children should learn French or Spanish.
Hey, these are big decisions too, as we are making decisions that impact our children's intellects and characters, decisions that influence who they grow up to become in adulthood.
Quite frankly, our decisions are a heck of a lot more important than which way Apple faces its logo, wouldn't you agree?
Never underestimate the value of each decision you make for your children, because it's the little things that eventually become the big things; hence, the little things matter just as much, even though it may not appear to be that way.
That’s why, we want to do our best to make the right decisions. In making better decisions, we want to consider two things: making fewer trivial decisions and making better quality decisions.
Decision-Making Strategy #1
To avoid trivial decision-making so that we can save our energy for the bigger decisions we'll need to make throughout the day, we can practice the simple habit of automating our tasks.
To begin the automation process, you want to pay attention to your morning and note the myriad of decisions you'll need to make, such as how to spend the wee part of your morning before your kids wake up, what time you want your children to wake up, who's going to wear what, what will be on the breakfast menu, and who will wash the breakfast dishes.
That's a very short list of the many decisions we make before the clock even strikes noon. Now that you have your list of decisions, you can then automate them by deciding one time how all these events will take place.
Create a morning plan, a meal plan, and a wardrobe plan, and you will have fewer decisions to make.
Before you go to sleep the night before, know what your morning plan is, know what your children's morning plan is, know what you will prepare for breakfast, and definitely know what you are going to wear the next day (hopefully not black or grey tees!).
Automate as much decision-making in the morning hours so your mind is freed up and you can conserve more energy for the rest of the decisions you will need to make that day.
Desision-Making Strategy #2
Another factor to consider is the quality of your decisions. When we are tired, we are more likely to make poorer quality decisions because we have less self-control, so we may say yes to the ice cream man when he comes around the block or to the chocolate cake we swore to ourselves that we would not eat.
THE DEBATE
We may also struggle to make a decision, weighing two options back and forth and back and forth, only to later regret the choice we made.
THE AVOIDANCE
We may even postpone making decisions altogether. The avoidance strategy will rob you of even more energy as you now have the decision taking up space in the back of your mind and tapping on your conscience every so often to remind you that there is still a decision to be made.
Ideally, if we can become aware of our energy levels in relation to the importance of a decision we have to make, rather than ignore the decision we have to make, we can learn to intentionally postpone the bigger decisions for the next day when we will hopefully be refreshed and able to think more clearly.
“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing. The worst thing you can do is nothing.”
In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing. The worst thing you can do is nothing.” Theodore Roosevelt
We all know that moment when a friend asks us to do something, such as go out to dinner or meet for coffee, but we know we don't have time to accommodate her. However, we're tired when she asks us, and we say yes anyway, only to regret it later.
This one little tactic of postponing making decisions until you are refreshed will lead to better quality decisions and less regret in life.
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About Elizabeth Y. Hanson
Developing a comprehensive understanding of how to raise and educate a “whole” child, based on tradition and modern research, Liz devotes her time to helping parents to get it right.
Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of two unique online courses, Raise Your Child Well: Preserving Your Child's Natural Genius by Laying a Solid Foundation During the First Seven Years and the Smart Homeschooler Academy: Homeschooling the "Whole" Child for a Well-Trained Mind and Character
As an Educator, Homeschool Emerita, Writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach, Liz has 23 years of experience raising children and working in education.
Liz is available for one-on-one consultations as needed.
"I know Elizabeth Y. Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”
—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.
