Beyond Impulsivity and Overthinking: Master Balanced Decision-Making with ADHD

Finding the Balance Between Impulsivity and Overthinking

With ADHD traits, I often find myself either rushing to make quick decisions (impulsivity) or overthinking until I’m utterly exhausted.

Running a business as an entrepreneur with ADHD can feel like juggling multiple roles in a three-ring circus. For me, it’s a vivid mental image where impulsivity performs acrobatics, analysis paralysis juggles countless possibilities, and self-doubt walks a perilous tightrope. This is the essence of making decisions with ADHD, especially for those of us who are business owners or self-employed.

I’ve often felt the weight of decision-making in my entrepreneurial journey. As a entrepreneur, the buck truly starts and stops with me. Without any external structure to rely on, because I AM the boss, every choice can feel incredibly high stakes. The livelihood of my team and myself hinges on these decisions. With ADHD traits, I often find myself either rushing to make quick decisions (impulsivity) or overthinking until I’m utterly exhausted. These are the two extremes that we, as female entrepreneurs with ADHD, often swing between.

In my analogy-loving brain, I’ve come to think of these extremes as the “speedboat” and the “anchor.” The speedboat mode is where impulsive decisions happen at lightning speed, driven by dopamine and the thrill of immediate action. This mode is quite common among entrepreneurs who dived into business without meticulous plans, thinking they could figure things out on the fly. While it can lead to quick wins and creativity, the downside is the very real risk of missing crucial details, potentially resulting in financial impacts or strained relationships with clients and team members. Yet, I get the appeal. There’s a certain exhilaration in making decisions at high speed, and it’s easy to justify them by saying at least we’re moving and taking action.

On the flip side, there’s the anchor mode, where decision-making is bogged down by endless research and analysis. Here, browser tabs open like wildfire, spreadsheets proliferate, and the search for perfect information becomes an exhausting, never-ending pursuit. I’ve been there, too, trying to avoid mistakes and regrets by seeking out every possible bit of info. The mental fatigue and burnout that comes with this is overwhelming. But perhaps the worst part is the missed opportunities—the chances I didn’t take because I was so paralyzed by the quest for perfection.

To strike a balance, I’ve developed a practical decision-making framework for ADHD, inspired by something everyone is familiar with: traffic lights. It's a system that designates decisions as green light (low risk and low impact), yellow light (moderate risk and impact), and red light (high risk and high impact). For green light decisions, the approach is simple: trust your gut and decide quickly. These decisions are typically small, routine, and repeated tasks where the consequences are minimal. If it takes more than five minutes, it’s not a green light decision.

Yellow light decisions are trickier, requiring more thought but within set boundaries. These decisions might involve moderate investments in new tools, changes in client agreements, or new business strategies. I give myself a time frame of two hours to two days to deliberate and define three essential criteria that must be met, thus avoiding endless research.

The most significant decisions, red light decisions, are where the stakes are genuinely high. These include hiring team members, major business pivots, or large investments. For these, I allow between a week to a month, involve external advisors, and carefully weigh the pros and cons. But even with thorough research, I set a strict limit to prevent analysis paralysis.

Personal decision boundaries have also been crucial for me in combating analysis paralysis. I set specific time limits on research, define how many sources of information I will consider, and use the “good enough” rule to push through perfectionism. For instance, I might set a 70% confidence benchmark for green light decisions, forcing myself to accept that not every decision needs to be perfect.

I’ve also adopted some personal rules to maintain my decision-making capacity. I avoid making important decisions after 8 pm, sleep on decisions involving significant investments, and limit myself to three opinions on major decisions. This has helped me move past seeking endless validation and conflicting advice from numerous sources.

Tracking decisions through a journal, whether written or via voice notes, has been another game-changer. By recording the date, key factors, expected outcomes, actual outcomes, and lessons learned, I’ve built a database of my decisions. Reviewing this monthly helps me celebrate good decisions and learn from the less successful ones without judgment, fostering a healthy separation of my identity from decision outcomes.

As a female entrepreneur with ADHD, I’ve learned that every decision is an experiment. Seeing choices as data collection has allowed me to approach my business with curiosity and resilience. Mistakes provide valuable data just as much as successes do. By implementing these strategies, I’ve been able to build my decision-making confidence, maintain momentum in my business, and continue growing.

If you find yourself struggling with decision-making like I once did, I encourage you to consider these strategies. Think about whether you are more of a speedboat or an anchor in your decision-making style. Use the traffic light system to categorize decisions by their impact, and don’t forget to track your choices. By doing so, you’ll not only make more effective decisions but build the confidence you need to succeed as a female entrepreneur with ADHD. Keep experimenting, keep learning, and remember that every decision is a step toward growth.

If you'd like to hear the full episode on the ADHD-ish Podcast, you can do that here.