How To Avoid 'Decision Fatigue'

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Whether it's deciding to change jobs or what to have for breakfast -- big or small -- we make lots of decisions every day.

One estimate says the average person makes 35,000 daily to be exact. And it can actually wear you down and lead to wrong choices but there are ways to avoid "decision fatigue."

No matter the day, Gillian Small is always virtually in the same outfit.

The public relations executive has a closet full of the same clothes.

"I can just wake up, I now exactly what I'm going to wear."

She says it cuts down on "decision fatigue" -- feeling overwhelmed from constant decision-making.

"I think that I have been able to apply my decision to other more important aspects of my life," explained Small.

She's not the only one. Mark Zuckerberg wears the same thing every day for the same reason. Even President Obama only wears blue or gray suits, saying "I don't want to make decisions about what I'm wearing because I have too many other decisions to make."

"You've got to be choosy about choosing," said Dr. Sheena Iyengar, who studies choice making. She says the "uniform" is a smart move.

"You want to cut down on the number of decisions you're making per day so that you have the energy it takes to focus on the ones that matter a lot."

Dr. Iyengar says decision overload can lead to bad outcomes.

"We start using short cuts like 'I'll just pick the first one or the one that everybody else is choosing.'"

And there's science behind the phenomenon. Decision making depletes the brain of glucose which leads to less self-control.

"Each time you make those decisions you get less and less ability to resist impulses. Why? Because it's running out of glucose," noted Dr. Howard Forman.

Experts say it helps to make important decisions early in the day and plan some down time to help prioritize what's really important.