Decision Fatigue is Real! & How it Affects Your Creative Process

That Instagram reel you were going to film? It’s still sitting in your Notes app as a half-formed idea.

The song that’s been floating around in your head? Still unrecorded.

And hey – it’s all totally normal.

Decision fatigue is real, and it’s affecting our creative processes more than we might realize.

Our creative to-do list keeps growing, but somehow we’re spending more time choosing the perfect playlist or reorganizing our art supplies than actually creating.

Sweet friend, if this sounds like you, you’re not lacking inspiration or motivation – you’re experiencing decision fatigue, and it’s secretly draining your creative energy.

But here’s the magical thing: once you understand what’s really happening, you can transform those overwhelming choices into a beautifully flowing creative practice. ✨

Decision Fatigue is Real… But What Is It?

Is decision fatigue a real thing? It’s just as real as the fatigue you feel at the gym! ⚡️

It took me 3 years to start writing music after graduating from theatre school, because I simply could not fathom the decisions that it took to be so dang vulnerable on a recorded piece of music. Forever.

But you’ve probably also felt decision fatigue in the more trivial, everyday decisions. What to wear, what to eat for lunch, what task to start with first.

There are decisions all around us — and every time we’re exhausted by them, we have less and less energy to make executive decisions in our creative lives.

But let’s talk more about what decision fatigue actually is so we can get to the root of it.

Think of your daily decision-making power like your phone battery. You start each morning at 100%, but every single choice you make – from the moment you wake up – takes a tiny bit of that energy away. Decision fatigue happens when your mental battery gets low after making too many choices, big or small.

When your brain is tired from deciding things all day (what to eat, what to wear, which email to answer first), it starts looking for shortcuts. You might notice yourself:

• Avoiding decisions completely (“I’ll just skip creating today”)
• Making impulsive choices (“Sure, whatever, I’ll just use this first draft”)
• Sticking to the safest option (“I’ll just do exactly what I did yesterday”)

Understanding this willpower depletion helps explain why creative decisions become harder as the day progresses.

Peep: there’s also a time to choose quantity over quality — read this blog to learn more about it!: Quality Over Quantity: When Creatives Should (& Shouldn’t) Follow It

This is why you might feel completely energized to work on your art in the morning, but by evening, getting started on your creative project feels… exhausting.

Your creative well isn’t endless, and modern life takes more sips than ever before. Between social media, endless options for everything, and the pressure to “optimize” every choice, we’re making more decisions in a day than our creative ancestors made in a week!

Signs You Have Decision Fatigue in Your Work

If you’re asking yourself “is decision fatigue real?” just look at how your creative energy changes throughout the day! But let’s get a little deeper — how decision fatigue sneaks into your artistic practice.

Because sometimes, literally naming something is the first step to transforming it into something beautiful. 🙌

Procrastination

That moment when you sit down to create but suddenly feel an overwhelming urge to reorganize your entire digital file system? That’s probably your brain’s way of avoiding more decisions. When we’re experiencing decision fatigue, we often gravitate toward mindless tasks that don’t require creative choices.

Your brain is saying something like, “Please, no more choices! Let me just organize these files alphabetically instead!”

It’s important to remember: this isn’t about laziness or lack of dedication to your craft. It’s your mind’s natural response to feeling overwhelmed by choices. The fear of making the “wrong” creative decision can paralyze us, making even small artistic choices feel monumentally heavy.

Ready to sprinkle some more magic into your creative journey? Join my cozy corner of the internet over on YouTube, where I share weekly inspiration and dreamy tips to help you become the abundant artist you’re meant to be ✨

Mental Exhaustion Symptoms

When decision fatigue is real and present in your life, even small creative choices can feel overwhelming.

You might feel…

• Irritability
• Difficulty concentrating
• Creative paralysis are all common signs of decision fatigue

Have you ever noticed how making art feels effortless some days, but on others, making the smallest decision on your songwriting, sketch, dance, whatever it may be, feels like you’re literally running a marathon.

That heavy, foggy feeling isn’t just tiredness — it’s your brain telling you it’s overwhelmed with decisions!

Is decision fatigue real? Yessss, friend. But it’s totally normal and okay for you to have it! Once you have gotten out of it, you might want to make sure your voice is speaking as loudly as you want it to. Explore this next: How to Find Your Artistic Voice (Without Forcing It)

Creative Block

Sometimes creative block isn’t about lack of inspiration but it’s about having too many possibilities. When every artistic choice feels weighted with importance, we can freeze up entirely. This is especially true where we have unlimited options at our fingertips with social media. Where do we even start in our creative business? What path should we choose? Starting on socials? Starting in the community? Both? Neither?

Think about it: when you’re working on a piece, you’re not just deciding what to create – you’re choosing between countless tools, techniques, styles, and approaches.

Each decision builds on the last, creating a complex web of choices that can feel overwhelming when your decision-making energy is low.

Decision-Making Tips for Your Creative Process

We know that decision fatigue is real and a totally valid part of our creative processes. Great! Now, we can start implementing strategies to work with it rather than against it.

Let’s explore some practical choice overload solutions that can help preserve your creative energy.

Set Up Creative Rituals

When you have set routines around your creative time, you eliminate dozens of small decisions before you even begin. Your brain doesn’t have to decide when, where, or how to start – it can simply flow into your established practice. ✨

Rituals can be suuuuuuper simple. It could be as simple as lighting a candle when you start writing music, or dimming the lights so cleaning your space can feel a little more calm.

Cultivating intentional, daily rituals will become anchors that tell your brain it’s time to create, no decisions needed. 💫

Batch Similar Tasks Together

Every time you switch between different types of tasks, you’re forcing your brain to make new decisions about how to approach the work.

It might seem simple to just switch between tabs, but context switching actually greatly slows down your flow.

That’s why I always talk about batching similar tasks together. For instance, if you’re a musician, maybe you spend one session just writing lyrics, another recording melodies, and another editing.

If you’re balancing a Cozy Girl Job, maybe you theme your days of the week where Mondays are all for your job, and Wednesdays are all for your creativity.

This isn’t about rigid scheduling, but creating a flow that works with your brain’s natural energy patterns. Think of creativity like a dance. When you stay in one rhythm instead of constantly changing tempo, it can flow in beautiful, uninterrupted movements.

Use Templates & Systems

Creating templates for your creative process can actually free up more energy for the truly important artistic decisions. This could be as simple as having a set warm-up routine for your practice session. Or it can be as detailed as creating project planning templates for new pieces.

In order to create templates or systems to work for your life, ask yourself: “What decisions don’t need to be unique every time?”

Maybe it’s your social media posting schedule, your creative workspace setup, or your editing workflow. Do you do repetitive tasks over and over at your job, and by spending 5-10 minutes creating a templated email or message, you can save yourself time repeating it?

Plan Your Day *Before* You Start

One of the most powerful ways to combat decision fatigue is to make important choices when your creative well is full.

If you’re a night owl, you can take 10 minutes the night before to plan your next creative session, or you can do it a few minutes after waking up (that’s what I do!).

This doesn’t necessarily mean planning every detail, but setting that clear intention and direction for your work. Decide what project you’ll focus on, what specific aspect you’ll tackle, and what success looks like for that session.

This way, when you sit down to create, you can dive right in instead of spending your fresh morning energy stressed on planning decisions.

Decision Fatigue is Real, But It Doesn’t Have to Control Your Creativity!

Decision fatigue isn’t a flaw in your artistic practice! It’s a sign that you need to create more supportive structures around your creativity. By understanding and working with your brain’s natural decision-making patterns, you can create more freely and joyfully.

Subscribe to my YouTube channel for weekly inspiration and practical tips. Let’s reimagine what it means to be a productive, inspired artist — one mindful decision at a time. ✨