Every easy choice will have its consequence tomorrow.
“Every easy choice will have its consequence tomorrow.” - From the movie DOUBT, 2008.
As human beings, we are confronted with superfluous decisions all the time. Did you know that there are biological costs to decision making? The more decisions you rack up in one area, the fewer decisions you can effectively make elsewhere. If you make a ton of unnecessary decisions - which email to check, what to do first in the morning, what to have for breakfast, what makeup to use - your going to deplete your ability to make good decisions later. Decision-making isn’t to be avoided—that’s not the problem. Look at a good CEO or top corporate performer and you’ll see a high volume of decisions. But it’s deliberation—the time we vacillate over and consider each decision—that’s the attention consumer. The New York Times Magazine had a great article on this topic, now known as “decision fatigue”.
No matter how rational, high-minded and intelligent you are, you can’t make decision after decision without paying a biological price. It’s different from ordinary physical fatigue. You are not consciously aware of being tired, but you are low on mental energy. The more choices you make throughout the day, the harder each one becomes for your brain, and eventually you look for shortcuts, such as acting impulsively (grabbing cookies from the kitchen at work or home; buying the rust treatment at the carwash etc) or avoiding any choice at all and becoming paralyzed when it comes to making a decision. (“Maybe I just won’t put on any makeup tonight, even though I have a date.”)
What does all this have to do with skincare and makeup? Well, studies show that people with the best self-control are the ones who structure their lives so as to conserve willpower. They establish habits that eliminate the mental effort of making choices. Instead of deciding every morning whether or not to force themselves to exercise, they set up regular appointments to work out with a friend. Instead of deciding every night wether or not to wash their face, they have an established skincare routine that only takes minutes to execute. Instead of trying to decide what makeup look to wear today, they have an established look that makes them feel beautiful, and that they have learned to achieve in just 10 minutes.
So there you have it. If you don’t have an established skincare routine yet, or you don’t like the amount deliberation you entertain when working with your makeup in the morning, come see me to discuss either. Don’t let these decisions sap the energy needed for the really big decisions of the day…like what ice cream to have for dessert!
“Big decisions, small decisions, they all add up.” - NEW YORK TIMES - AUG 17, 2011