Ep. 151 - The Cost of Doing Nothing: The Brain Science of Indecision and Inaction

   We tend to look at indecision and inaction as problems—something to fix, push through, or beat ourselves up over. But what if they’re actually signals from your brain, telling you to pause, process, and realign? In this episode we’ll explore why we get stuck in decision paralysis, the fears that fuel hesitation, and simple strategies to break free from overthinking and start taking action. So, if you’ve ever found yourself endlessly weighing options but never making a move, this episode is for you! 

Transcript

We’ve all had times when we’ve felt the wave of indecision. There are either too many choices or we’re just at mental capacity and can’t quite grasp the energy we need to process – or sometimes even care about – the choices in front of us. For me, this is my fatigue factor – either physically or mentally, I’m just done. 

But what about the times when we do have the decision made or know the action to take and we just….don’t…do…it. There’s often not a logical indicator behind what’s causing this perpetual pause. The action itself isn’t necessarily large or looming. We just can’t quite take the step to do the thing. And it’s hard to even describe why. Hours go by, days go by, and we’re still stuck in the swirl. 

The Bottom Line on Top of this episode is that indecision and inaction are silent signals from your brain asking to slow down so it can catch up. 

To better understand why this happens, let’s look at the field of neuroeconomics, this  explores decision-making and our ability to process multiple alternatives and then follow through with action.

Indecision is a mental state; it’s about struggling to choose. Inaction is a behavioral outcome; it’s about failing to act, even if a choice has been made.

Decision-making is a battle between different parts of our brain. On one side, we have the prefrontal cortex, this is the rational thinker. It weighs options, calculates risks, and considers long-term benefits. This is the part of your brain that will tell you to save money instead of impulse-buying another candle you don’t need…even when it smells so good.

On the other side, we have the limbic system, this is our emotional and instinctive brain. This is where fear, excitement, and uncertainty live. It prefers immediate rewards and avoids discomfort. This is the part of your brain that tells you to wait before making a decision—just in case something better comes along. Or, it convinces you that doing nothing is safer than taking a risk.

When these two systems are in conflict, we freeze. That’s where indecision and inaction live.

Here’s the funny thing: not making a decision is actually a decision. In fact, episode 24 dove deep into that topic and explored whether indecision is an output of being overwhelmed or burned out or if it's more of a pattern where you are having an avoidant reaction. Go check out that episode if that hits a little close.

Either way, our brain has a built-in bias towards the status quo. It prefers staying the same over making a change, even if the change is beneficial.

One study found that people were much more likely to accept a default option—even when better choices were available—because making a change felt too effortful. Does that sound familiar?

How often do we postpone a decision and say “oh, let me just think about that later?” Our brains are wired to conserve energy, and choosing takes effort. That’s why we delay signing up for a class, exploring a career, or getting on a dating site, or even deciding what to eat for dinner.

But here’s the thing though: the longer we delay, the harder the decision feels. This is when our friend decision fatigue shows up. The more choices we make throughout the day, the more our brain leans toward defaulting to inaction. Episode 10 looked at this decision fatigue and offered ideas on how to recognize it and redirect it. 

So whether you find yourself waffling on deciding or hesitating on acting, there are a few  brain-friendly ways that might help you push through:

1. Acknowledge the block and plan to plan. Once the mental swirl sets in, the negative mental soundtrack starts to get loud. “Not right now” is actually a form of self-care. But making a specific time in the near future will help you have a clear mind (and dedicate some time in that calendar) to have the space to take the action needed. 
2. Seek safe support. Once the swirl starts, it’s easy to go inward and then we get stuck in our own quietness, our own quiet agony. I was at a recent event in Chicago and I was leading this discussion. A woman told me she couldn’t press the buy button on a set of luggage for an upcoming trip. They’d already picked out all the colors, all the sizes, everything.  Four days had passed and she still hadn’t hit “buy”, and she was embarrassed and confused about her hesitation. As we sat and talked about it, she started feeling safe to feel the feels and the confusion. Then after a few minutes, she felt empowered to pick up her phone and hit the button. We don’t always know the why in the moment that we’re stuck, but it’s important to let the feelings breathe so then they can release the grip. 
3. Reframe the risk. Instead of asking yourself, “What if I make the wrong choice?” “What if somebody gets mad at me?” ask, “What am I willing to pay for doing nothing?” Often, we focus so much on the risk of action that we’re not considering the risk of nothing.

When you find yourself in indecision or inaction (and we all do), remember that it’s temporary. It’s simply your brain’s resistance to too much effort or too much too much. 

Taking time to pause is different from staying stuck. Acknowledge the cognitive quicksand first and then set a time that you will come back and revisit it. Reach for a resource. Isolation only turns up the volume of the white noise. 

And when you’re ready, take one small step. It doesn’t have to be the perfect step, just the next one. And the next step, it’s for you, for right now.