Every time you switch decision contexts, your brain pays a toll. Researchers call it "switching cost"—the mental energy required to shift gears. It's like a computer loading a new program: resources are consumed just in the transition.
Consider Anna's typical morning: - 8:00: Budget review (financial decisions) - 8:15: Team slack message (social decisions) - 8:18: Back to budget (financial decisions) - 8:25: Calendar alert (scheduling decisions) - 8:30: Quick email check (priority decisions) - 8:35: Return to budget (financial decisions)
She spent 35 minutes "working on the budget" but made only 10 minutes of progress. The constant context switching consumed the rest. Each transition required her brain to: - Save current context - Load new decision framework - Make the decision - Save that context - Reload original framework
It's exhausting and inefficient. Batching eliminates these switching costs by grouping similar decisions together.