Don't Be Afraid To Decide
Some years ago, I was faced with a decision. The details don't really matter but it was one of those life-changing decisions that come to us all sooner or later. I agonised over it; I lay awake at nights thinking about it. It seemed to me that if I made one choice, I would be happy, while if I made the other choice I would be unhappy.
One road was right, the other road was wrong. The problem was, I didn't know which was which. I talked to friends endlessly - I must have driven everyone mad, trying to work out which was the right road. And eventually, circumstances changed and suddenly there was no decision to be made any more.
Well, you might think I should happy about that. After all, the terrible decision that I had to make, the choice that I had agonised over, was gone. I didn't have to worry about what would happen if I made the wrong choice any more. But the more I thought about it afterwards, the more I began to realise that something far worse had happened.
I had hesitated and procrastinated for so long that I froze. Rather than making the wrong decision, I made no decision at all. All the control that I had over my life at that point, the responsibility that was mine, I had given them away.
As I thought about it more, I began to see that my thinking had been wrong. I had been so worried about making the 'wrong' decision that I did not make a decision at all. It is like as if I was standing in front of an approaching train and spending so much time pondering whether it was better to jump into the ditch on my left or into the trench on my right that the train just rolled straight over me!
After all, how do we know if a decision is the right or the wrong one? We will only know for sure from the consequence that followed. We can foresee some of these outcomes but most of the time we can't. It's only when we look back that we can determine if the decision made had been good or bad, right or wrong.
Life is all about making choices. Every day we're faced with hundreds of choices - some inconsequential, others vital. It's important that, as hard as some of them may be, we make those choices and take those decisions. Never be so afraid of making the 'wrong' decision that you make no decision at all. If it turns out to be wrong, well, you did the best you could at the time. Correct what you can and move on. When you're faced with a choice, remember that it's better to make a decision - any decision - than to stand there and be run over by the train.
Some years ago, I was faced with a decision. The details don't really matter but it was one of those life-changing decisions that come to us all sooner or later. I agonised over it; I lay awake at nights thinking about it. It seemed to me that if I made one choice, I would be happy, while if I made the other choice I would be unhappy.
One road was right, the other road was wrong. The problem was, I didn't know which was which. I talked to friends endlessly - I must have driven everyone mad, trying to work out which was the right road. And eventually, circumstances changed and suddenly there was no decision to be made any more.
Well, you might think I should happy about that. After all, the terrible decision that I had to make, the choice that I had agonised over, was gone. I didn't have to worry about what would happen if I made the wrong choice any more. But the more I thought about it afterwards, the more I began to realise that something far worse had happened.
I had hesitated and procrastinated for so long that I froze. Rather than making the wrong decision, I made no decision at all. All the control that I had over my life at that point, the responsibility that was mine, I had given them away.
As I thought about it more, I began to see that my thinking had been wrong. I had been so worried about making the 'wrong' decision that I did not make a decision at all. It is like as if I was standing in front of an approaching train and spending so much time pondering whether it was better to jump into the ditch on my left or into the trench on my right that the train just rolled straight over me!
After all, how do we know if a decision is the right or the wrong one? We will only know for sure from the consequence that followed. We can foresee some of these outcomes but most of the time we can't. It's only when we look back that we can determine if the decision made had been good or bad, right or wrong.
Life is all about making choices. Every day we're faced with hundreds of choices - some inconsequential, others vital. It's important that, as hard as some of them may be, we make those choices and take those decisions. Never be so afraid of making the 'wrong' decision that you make no decision at all. If it turns out to be wrong, well, you did the best you could at the time. Correct what you can and move on. When you're faced with a choice, remember that it's better to make a decision - any decision - than to stand there and be run over by the train.
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