Is A Chop Suey Of Choices Turning Your Brain To Bananas? (And what to do about it!)

[Dien Rice]

I just read this fascinating article... Apparently some recent research shows that the process of making choices drains your "brain energy". As a result, you end up having less self-discipline and self-control...

You can read the whole article here -

Daily Decisions Make Mush of Your Mind - by Dave Mosher
http://www.livescience.com/health/08...y-choices.html

Here are some quotes from the article...

New research shows that such daily decisions eat up limited mental resources, ultimately rendering our self-control into mush. Which means making too many decisions might be why many people can't stick to a diet, finish a big project or even complete simple daily tasks.

[...]

To figure this out, the researchers conducted seven experiments. In one of the trials, subjects were asked to pick from a selection of consumer products, then afterward coerced to show will power by dunking their hands in ice-cold water or downing a bitter yet healthy beverage.

Turns out those who made more decisions before their unpleasant challenge kept their hands in the ice water for less time than or didn't finish as much drink as people who had fewer choices.

Another experiment used college students and had one group pick out courses to satisfy a degree while another group didn't have to make such choices. Researchers gave both groups math problems to study and, similar to the other experiments, the decision-makers performed worse and were more likely to succumb to distractions such as playing video games or reading magazines than those who weren't forced into choosing courses.

To add to their laboratory results, the researchers took their work to the decision-making hub of any community: A shopping mall. Shoppers who said they made more decisions during their day ended up scoring the worst on an impromptu math test than other shoppers.

Fun choices — such as deciding on a free gift from a registry — also turned up to be draining, although less than aversive choices.

So, if making decisions turns your mind to "mush" and your brain into "bananas" - what can you do about it?

It also happens I've been reading recently about the power of "routine". I was reading about it in terms of writing - some writers have a "routine" of writing X number of words every day (e.g. 1,000 words a day, up to 6,000 words a day). This "routine" reduces their decision making (they've already made the decision, and they stick to it) - and it probably helps to increase their self-discipline.

So perhaps the way around this phenomenon is to have a regular "routine". So you don't need to keep making new decisions - just make a decision about a routine, and stick to it. (An example of this is that the physicist Richard Feynman used to keep a wardrobe full of identical coats - so he didn't have to decide which one to wear each day! They all looked the same!)

Another good idea is to create "operations manuals" for yourself, about regular tasks you do... Then, you don't need to make new decisions for regular tasks, you just read what you wrote and do it. I wrote about that once here...

http://www.biztactics.com/blog/2005/...iness-more.php

I hope you enjoyed this post! Your thoughts on this are most welcome...

Cheers

Dien

Originally Posted by Dien Rice

Another good idea is to create "operations manuals" for yourself, about regular tasks you do... Then, you don't need to make new decisions for regular tasks, you just read what you wrote and do it.

I agree. Operations manuals are critical to growing a business and to document my operations AND manage my efforts I have turned to a piece of software called GTD Tiddly Wiki.

What is it?

GTD wiki is an open-source (FREE!) piece of software that allows a user to create a wiki... a webspace that allows user to create and easily modify content.

This allows me to easily modify my operations manuals from any computer in the world -- and share that manual with freelancers and outsourced employees.

(NOTE: I have different password protected versions of the wiki posted for employees. An operations manual is a very sensitive piece of information and you would not want competitors getting ahold of a copy -- or malicious people. So think through your security plan.)

While any wiki allows you to create your operations manual online, I chose GTD Tiddly Wiki because it allows me to integrate my (Getting Things Done) GTD lists and support materials. With GTD Tiddly Wiki I can create and edit lists, and then print directly to 3x5 cards for my HipsterPDA.

Some of you might find this idea useful, especially if you outsource employees and/or work.

Aloha,

Jason Cain

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by Goldblogger

I agree. Operations manuals are critical to growing a business and to document my operations AND manage my efforts I have turned to a piece of software called GTD Tiddly Wiki.

What is it?

GTD wiki is an open-source (FREE!) piece of software that allows a user to create a wiki... a webspace that allows user to create and easily modify content.

This allows me to easily modify my operations manuals from any computer in the world -- and share that manual with freelancers and outsourced employees.

(NOTE: I have different password protected versions of the wiki posted for employees. An operations manual is a very sensitive piece of information and you would not want competitors getting ahold of a copy -- or malicious people. So think through your security plan.)

While any wiki allows you to create your operations manual online, I chose GTD Tiddly Wiki because it allows me to integrate my (Getting Things Done) GTD lists and support materials. With GTD Tiddly Wiki I can create and edit lists, and then print directly to 3x5 cards for my HipsterPDA.

Some of you might find this idea useful, especially if you outsource employees and/or work.

Hi Jason,

Thanks for sharing that!

I think private wikis can be incredibly useful for business...

I think they're a better way of keeping notes. When you think about it, they're a little bit like a huge version of a "mind map", where each "point" on a the mind map can be a new set of notes - as short as a few words, or as long as an article.

I make many of my notes nowadays using a private wiki I have installed on my computer. Personally, I use BladeWiki. It's free to download - you can get it at http://bladewiki.site.io/homepage.htm .

Also, my brother is running a games-development business with employees and freelancers, and he's installed a private wiki on his website, to help them all coordinate their activities. They're using MediaWiki http://www.mediawiki.org to share with each other what they've done, and communicate what they still have to do. (It's the same software behind Wikipedia, and it's also free.) I can't show you their wiki (since it's private and password-protected for their behind-the-scenes work), but his website is http://www.tridentgames.com. They have two games under development, with both scheduled to launch this year.

So, all in all, I think wikis are very useful tools for entrepreneurs, and for many others too...

Thanks for bringing that up, Jason!

Cheers

Dien

Talking about Wikis...

Here's an interesting bit of News...

And a Great Free offer...

How many Niche publications, ideas and possibilities can you Re-Create out of Encyclopedia Britannica?

One Big Wiki...

http://news.google.com/news?oe=utf-8... =Search+News
http://britannicanet.com/index.php?page_id=2
http://britannicanet.com/?page_id=34

Phil

[Dien Rice]

Originally Posted by Phil

Talking about Wikis...

Here's an interesting bit of News...

And a Great Free offer...

How many Niche publications, ideas and possibilities can you Re-Create out of Encyclopedia Britannica?

One Big Wiki...

http://news.google.com/news?oe=utf-8... =Search+News
http://britannicanet.com/index.php?page_id=2
http://britannicanet.com/?page_id=34

Wow, that's interesting, Phil...

I'm sure Wikipedia must have decimated Encyclopedia Britannica's business. So now Britannica is striking back!

I wonder if it will work out for them? Wikipedia is a powerful resource, but it's not as "authoritative" as Britannica... It'll be a tough fight...

I signed up to check it out.

Cheers,

Dien