Decision-making is one of the most exhausting aspects of leadership. In today’s world of constant messages, emails, and endless notifications, many leaders feel trapped in a cycle of reactivity. The result? Decision-making fatigue.
What is Decision-Making Fatigue?
Decision-making fatigue happens when the sheer number of small and large decisions overwhelms us. Instead of making thoughtful choices, leaders fall into a pattern of reaction—answering messages, responding to emails, putting out fires.
Over time, this erodes clarity, drains energy, and often leads to no real decisions being made at all.
The Power of Sleeping on Decisions
One of the most effective tools leaders can use is also one of the simplest: pause before deciding.
A founder I work with transformed his leadership by adopting a new practice: he sleeps on important decisions. Instead of reacting immediately, he creates space—allowing intuition and reflection to guide him.
Leadership Lessons from Solitude
In Lead Yourself First, Raymond Kethledge and Mike Erwin reveal how many of history’s great leaders used solitude to sharpen their decision-making.
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Dwight D. Eisenhower took time alone before D-Day to plan one of the most complex operations in history.
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General Stanley McChrystal used helicopter rides during campaigns as reflective time away from noise.
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Jane Goodall found breakthroughs by sitting in silence, building trust with chimpanzees.
Each of these leaders accessed not just logic and analysis, but intuition—a vital element of effective decision-making.
Practical Ways Leaders Can Create Solitude
In our hyperconnected, input-heavy world, solitude must be intentional. Here are practices that help:
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Go for a walk without your phone
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Block one meeting-free hour each day
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Protect one day each month for reflection and planning
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Build a daily practice of meditation, breathwork, or journaling
These practices create space for leaders to reflect, recharge, and reconnect with their vision.
Why Solitude Strengthens Decision-Making
Solitude helps leaders:
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Reduce decision-making fatigue
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Improve focus and clarity
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Strengthen intuition
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Make faster, more confident decisions
As Jim Collins notes in BE 2.0, the best leaders use a combination of analysis and intuition. Too much analysis leads to paralysis, while intuition alone can be risky. Together, they are powerful.
Building Solitude into Your Leadership Practice
This is why, in my upcoming program The Compassionate Leaders Pathway (starting Sept 22nd), Module 2 is dedicated to building a daily practice of solitude and reflection. We’ll explore tools such as:
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Meditation
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Breathwork
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Journaling
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Visualisation
These practices not only improve decision-making but also lead to:
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Better sleep
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Higher productivity
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Greater emotional resilience
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A stronger sense of purpose
Final Thought
If you feel like you’re drowning in decisions, remember: the best leaders don’t react to everything. They create space. They pause. They reflect.
Sometimes, the wisest decision you can make today is to… sleep on it.
