How do I make better decisions under pressure?

In my old life as an exec, by the end of a heavy week I could not decide what to have for dinner. Ask me what to watch on telly and I would happily let someone else choose. After a day of decisions, the tank was simply empty.

‍That is how decision fatigue shows up in ordinary life, and it might seem harmless. Who has not struggled to decide what is for tea? But at work, decision fatigue is serious, and more common than we admit. The quality of our choices quietly declines the more of them we make, usually without us noticing.

The decisions that stay with you

Some of the hardest decisions of my career were the ones that impacted people directly. Decisions with no clean answer, where someone would be affected whatever I chose. I have never held those lightly. They stay with you, long after the meeting ends.

Those are the decisions that matter most, and they are often the ones we make when we are most depleted: at the end of a long week, between back-to-back meetings, with everyone waiting on an answer.

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Why more input makes it worse

Here is what I learned about deciding under that kind of weight. The instinct is to reach for more. More data, more meetings, more opinions, more reassurance. It feels responsible. But more input rarely brings clarity. It buries it. You end up hearing every voice in the room except your own.

The research points the other way. McKinsey's 2026 State of Organisations study found that leaders who make time to reflect are more decisive, not less, and nearly twice as likely to trust their organisation can adapt when the pressure is on. The answer, it turns out, is not more information. It is protected space to think.

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What actually helps: room to think

‍Good decisions need three things that noise crowds out: perspective, honest challenge, and a little quiet to reflect. The leaders I most admire, and the version of myself I am proudest of, protect that space on purpose. One undisturbed hour before a hard call is often worth more than ten more opinions about it.

‍That, really, is what coaching gives you: room to think clearly, back your own judgement, and decide as yourself, especially when it is a decision you will carry for a long time. Not more advice, and not another voice telling you what to do. Space to hear your own.

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If you are holding a heavy decision right now

If a big decision is weighing on you as you read this, I hope you find that hour. And if it would help to think it through with someone who has carried decisions like it, that is the work I do. You can book a free, no-pressure conversation here: https://calendly.com/beccabradd-rbpeopleleadership/discovery-call. You do not have to reach it alone.

And, for the record, it is chicken salad for dinner tonight. Still not sure about the telly.

Lead from who you are.

Becca

Get in touch:beccabradd@rbpeopleleadership.co.uk

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Becca Bradd is an executive and leadership coach and the founder of RB People and Leadership Advisory Ltd. She spent over twenty years in the NHS, including five at Board level as a People Director, and works with senior leaders, those stepping into executive roles, and leaders who face barriers to leadership.