How NOT To Make A Big Decision
If there’s one thing I can safely say that I have become VERY proficient at in the 40+ years I’ve been on this planet it is this: I am extremely good at NOT being able to make big decisions well.
Joking aside, the point is that we all have to make big decision from time to time.
It’s simply a part of life:
- Should I move to a different location?
- Get a different job?
- Get into a relationship?
- Get out of a relationship?
- Start a long and arduous project?
- Tell the truth about something which may get me or others into trouble?
etc.
You get the point.
Many times I have faced such decisions in my life, but the process of making them has not necessarily become any easier.
Why?
Because every single such situation you encounter is subtly different, with different actors, different motivations and different potential rewards or losses to bear at the end of it.
And one’s awareness of the ‘uniqueness’ of this new situation weighs down heavily.
That being said, I am very aware of how NOT to make a big decision — prevarication,
You see, a great many decisions I’ve made over the years have been marred by my reluctance to simply select a course of action and run with it.
In the end, I’ve made the decision — I’ve had to.
You can only sit on the fence for so long.
But the longer you sit on that fence, the more your ass is going to hurt.
Or to put it another — less crude — way, taking undue time over decision making will not help you or the process one little bit.
If anything it will make things worse You will simply postpone potential benefits from committing to the decision, hurting you and perhaps others who are closely involved.
At the very least you will prolong the pain you are feeling as a result of your prolonged contemplation.
Someone wise once told me that, in the end, it often doesn’t really matter that much which way we jump. Any decision you make will have positive and negative gains resulting from it.
But each decision will take you down a new path that will become part of the fabric of your life.
And it WILL be valid, even as it’s different to an alternative you didn’t select
As such, it’s far better to make decisions quickly, once you’ve considered all the salient data surrounding it.
So make your mind up, close your eyes, and just jump.
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