24 ways to stop making bad decisions

1. Decide important things early in the day, else decision fatigue sets in.
2. Have snacks to keep your glucose high, else your brain will respond more strongly to immediate rewards.
3. Sleeping or working on something else let’s you unconsciously work on complex problems.
4. Consider options in a foreign language and look at them as if you were somebody else.
5. Treat yourself for making a choice that benefits you more long-term instead.
6. When making choices about the future, we tend to assume that how we feel now is how we’ll feel forever. 

As reaction to panic or stress the body pumps adrenaline, making you breath faster and certain parts of the body feel tight, that makes us prone to often incorrect snap judgments. When having that kind of response, close your eyes, take a few breaths, and take some time to consider your next action.

That buys you time to physically calm down enough to make a more considered choice.