By Kate Pearlman-Shaw
It’s not rocket science: our brains don’t work well when we’re under pressure and fatigued. Here’s what’s happening, and what to do about it.
Leaders under pressure often assume they are making rational, evidence-based decisions, but neuroscience suggests otherwise. Kate Pearlman-Shaw, a UK-trained Clinical Psychologist and leadership coach with over 18 years of clinical experience, explains how fatigue and stress shift the brain into a “threat state” that undermines the prefrontal cortex and distorts judgment. When this happens, bias increases, collaboration weakens, and decision quality declines. Understanding how the brain moves between threat and reward states is essential for improving complex decision-making in high-pressure business environments.
Knowing how our brains work and what to do about it is a very helpful business skill, especially when decision making. Doing anything that is complex, and decision making is a complex task, requires the brain to be in a specific state. Fatigue and pressure are not conditions where that state exists. Here’s how this plays out and how to make the most effective decisions the neuropsychological way.
Some simple but crucial neurobiology
Although our brains have around 80 billion neurones and what’s described as miles of ‘wiring’, when it comes to decision making, there’s just two areas of the brain to know about and one very important brain state to be able to manage.
Starting with the prefrontal cortex at the front of our brain, this is our integration centre: anything requiring multi-modal function needs to be combined here. Decision making is a particularly complex task: data needs to be examined from multiple sources, reviewed from several lenses, other people’s views need integrating too. Making decisions as part of a group, adds extra complexity. There are areas within the prefrontal cortex that specifically deal with this complex activity, I call it the ‘analytic system,’ you may hear it called the ‘task positive network.’ We need this accessible and working well to be effective business leaders.
The second brain region to know about is the limbic area, comprising the thalamus, the hypothalamus and the amygdala, at the back of the brain above the brain stem. These are our reaction and alarm centres, receiving multiple sets of sensory data. Thought to be particularly active in modern day life, neuroscientist’s think we are frequently overstimulated especially through the use of digital technologies and multiple communication channels. When the limbic system is over stimulated, it decreases our access to the analytic system. This is known as a ‘threat state.’
The impact of ‘threat states’
In a threat state we are unable to use the analytic system well. This means that our data analysis is corrupted and flawed. We are less able to be evidence based and objective, meaning we are far more biased. Bias does not make for effective decision making. A parallel network, the ‘empathic system’ that works in conjunction with the ‘analytic system’ is also flawed at this time, meaning that we are less able to work with others, seek effective counsel and manage the inevitable variance of views in teams.
Furthermore, the longer the overstimulation occurs the more stress hormones we secrete: the limbic system having an integral relationship with our stress hormone production system. Cortisol, adrenaline and testosterone levels send our limbic areas into overdrive.
Physically, we will be experiencing this as stress and fatigue. We are often less aware of the cognitive changes, described above, unless prone to self-doubt which is likely to rise at these times. All meaning that we often carry on with complex tasks being unaware we’re not doing these well.
The opposite: the ‘reward state’
There is an opposite state, the ‘reward state,’ where the limbic areas are calmer, operating with a manageable level of stimulation and far less stress hormones. In such conditions access to the prefrontal cortex is good allowing deep, evidential thinking. The analytic and empathic networks are working, we can analyse, work objectively with complexity and engage well and do this with others: our decision-making ability is sound. Moreover, when we are being productive, connecting well with others and getting results we produce key neurotransmitter substances which strengthen a ‘reward state’: in particular, oxytocin, our bonding chemical, thought to have a strong calming effect on the limbic region.
Four actions to deliberately create a ‘reward state’ for decision making
There are four types of activities that combined, enable us to reduce stress and fatigue and be in a ‘reward state’ especially enhancing effective decision making:
1. Link decision making to purpose
In any type of meeting or when preparing any report it will help to keep the purposes, yes plural, in front of mind. With a meaningful purpose our prefrontal cortex automatically dials up, subduing limbic activity. Focusing on any, or a combination of these will work:
- Higher – the overarching organisational purpose
- Functional – sectional reasons (i.e. meet a need, financial, HR driven)
- Collective – why are we doing this (task, meeting, etc.)
- Personal – an attractive or meaningful reason for a person to engage
2. Manage the cognitive load
Since the limbic system is overloaded, de-stress it. Pertinent to decision making are:
- Be uninterrupted: multitasking diminishes analytic system effectiveness. Concentrate on one thing, or one element of the decision, at a time
- Chunk the decision: there’s separate work to do before, during and after a decision has been taken. In groups, take breaks as some people need reflection time to make a decision that sticks
- Have an ‘external brain’ to reduce ‘noise.’ This may be a detailed planning log, a journal, basically some form of repository for everything on your mind, so that thinking about them doesn’t interfere with your decision making
- Know your biases: it’s much easier to recognise bias if you already know what they are. Commonly interfering in decision making are expediency and experience biases: the sense that it feels right so it must be true and that history tells us it is true
3.Calm the limbic system
We all have a toolbox of stress management techniques. This action is simple: use what already works for you whether its mindfulness, getting outside, breathing or one of many, many more. These tools reduce threat states!
4. Boost oxytocin
The more oxytocin we produce the better, enabling decision making to be a breeze. When a group of people enjoy each other’s company, feel safe to say whatever they want and are successful together, that group will bond. Bonding creates oxytocin, reducing threat states. Enhancing trusted relationships benefits decision making. If your decision making is a lone pursuit build in some social support, thought to be the biggest correlate of reward states at work. This could be discussing the decision with others, seeking wise counsel or making time for social activities.
Doing all four of these, our prefrontal cortex will make better decisions as a result.
