LIFE
You Are One Choice Away From Everything Changing
How one small choice can revolutionize your life
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” — Lao Tzu
Have you ever stood on a diving board, toes curled over the edge, your heart pounding in your chest?
That suspended animation, when time stretches like taffy and your brain wages an epic battle between “DO IT!” and “ARE YOU CRAZY?!” Yeah, that about sums up life in a nutshell.
Instead, we dive into that great ocean of possibilities our existence is, rather than that chlorinated water below.
Here’s the thing: You’re one choice away from everything changing.
Whoa, hold up.
Did I just drop a motivational bomb on you? You bet your sweet bippy I did.
But before you can roll your eyes so hard they get stuck in the back of your head — been there, done that, got the optometrist bill — let’s dive into this idea like a caffeinated squirrel into a pile of acorns.
First of all, the elephant in the room — or rather, the mammoth. A woolly one, perhaps?
Anyway, the big hairy beast of a question: what in tarnation does “one choice away from everything changing” even mean?
Well, my friend, it is not some fortune cookie wisdom or a cheese-filled Instagram caption after all — though, for the record, it would totally look fabulous with one of those sunset background pictures.
It’s the butterfly effect, on steroids. You do remember that thing, right? Where “a butterfly flaps its wings in Brazil and causes a tornado in Texas”?
This time, though, YOU are the butterfly. Your choices are wing-flaps that will send ripples of awesomeness or chaos, depending on your mood and the amount of caffeine consumed.
Now, I know what you’re thinking.
“But KayDee, my choices aren’t that powerful! I’m just a regular Joe/Jane/Non-Binary Jamie trying to navigate this crazy world without accidentally setting my hair on fire while making toast.”
First of all, how dare you doubt yourself? Second, let me hit you with some truth bombs that will make your mind go boom in a good way — not in a “call the bomb squad” way.
Every single day, we make about eleventy billion choices. Okay, that might stand as a slight overstatement, but you get the point.
From the moment you wake up — Snooze or rise? Coffee or tea? Pants or no pants? — decisions are being made that shape the trajectory of your day, your life, and quite possibly the entire freakin’ universe.
Remember that time when you took a different way to work and spotted your new favorite coffee shop? Or maybe the time you gathered the guts to say hello to that super cute stranger, and now you are wedding planning?
I mean, if so far none of these things have happened to you — don’t worry, it’s coming. Unless you are happily single — in which case, rock on with your bad self!
These seemingly innocuous decisions can blossom into life-changing experiences quicker than you can say, “Holy guacamole!” And that’s the beauty of it all: you never know which choice is gonna be THE choice that gets everything rolling.
But here’s the rub — because there’s always a rub, like that time I thought I won the lottery but it turns out I was reading last week’s numbers: you have to actually MAKE the choice.
Shocking, I know.
It’s like expecting to win a race without ever leaving the starting line. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t work.
How many of us are stuck in quicksand from indecision, which paralyzes us from the fear of making the wrong choice?
We spend more time agonizing over what to watch on Netflix than actually watching anything. Let’s just be real: we all end up rewatching The Office for the 17th time anyway.
Now, here comes the real start of the special sauce: there is no wrong choice.
GASP I know, I know.
Your high school guidance counselor just felt a disturbance in the Force. But hear me out.
Every choice you make leads up to a new experience, new lesson, new chance for growth.
Even those that seem like total disasters at the time — like that haircut you got in college that made you look like a sentient mop — can turn out to have unexpected positive consequences. Maybe you met your best friend while you were hiding from the world in a hat shop; maybe you discovered a hidden talent for wig design. The possibilities are endless!
I’m not saying you should go all-out and start making reckless choices willy-nilly. Though “Willy-Nilly” would be an awesome name for a pet sloth.
No, what I mean is that you should go about your choices with a sense of curiosity, adventure, rather than fear and trepidation.
Think about life like a big book of Choose Your Own Adventures: if you make the wrong choice instead of being eaten by a Grue, you get to find another chapter in this life to explore. Let’s be honest, sometimes it’s sort of getting metaphorically eaten by a Grue that turns up some pretty interesting stories.
So, how do we turn up this “one choice away” mentality without spiraling into an existential crisis every time we’re forced to choose between tacos versus pizza?
The answer, obviously: both. Always both.
- Cradle the power of micro-choices: Yeah, not every choice needs to be earth-shattering. Start small. Choose to smile at a stranger. Opt for the salad over fries — or vice versa, live your best life. Take a different way home. These very tiny choices can make ripples in your life and those around you.
- Trust your gut: It’s like your intuition is a wise old wizard dude who lives in your belly. Eww, gross, but you get it. Sometimes it’s the most powerful choices that come from just plain old listening to that inner voice within when none of it makes any sense. Just make sure that it’s really your intuition and not an indigestion from those late-night nachos.
- Embrace the “yes, and” philosophy: This is from improv comedy, but it applied in real life works wonders. When you first think of saying “no, but,” say “yes, and” and avoid dancing around the opportunity. You never know what kind of adventures you might go on or what hidden talents you might find. Like that time I said “yes” to a salsa class and found out my hidden talent was stepping on people’s toes. Oops.
- Reframe failure as feedback: Every choice, even those that don’t go according to plan, is an opportunity for learning and growth. So, instead of beating yourself up over “mistakes,” ask yourself, “What can I learn from this?” Maybe you’re allergic to shellfish or actually just hate skydiving. Knowledge is power, people!
- Practice decisive action: The more you work the muscles of decision-making in your body, the stronger they will get. Start small — with little things, low-stakes decisions — and go big when you are ready. Pretty soon, you will be deciding life or death — okay, probably not that extreme, but life-altering — with a confidence like a cat knocking things off a table and saying, “I got this.”
It’s not just about the destination; it’s about celebrating one’s journey too.
Sometimes, what matters even more is the act of choice, not so much the choice itself. To actively work on taking control of your life, at shaping your path, that’s very empowering. Not to mention, it makes for way better stories at parties than, “I just kinda went with the flow and ended up here.”
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Remember, my intrepid choice-maker, you are the author of your story. Every decision you make is like a line of code in the simulation that is your life.
Wait, are we living in a simulation?
That’s a whole other existential crisis for another day.
The point is, you have way more control than you think over your reality.
So the next time that you stand over one more decision, whether it is major or minor, take a breath, and with exuberance, flap your wings — just like this butterfly. You never know which choice it will be that changes everything.
It may be deciding to finally clean out your junk drawer, where you really will find the winning lottery ticket from 2015, or it might be the decision to strike up a conversation at the bus stop with that interesting guy who will turn out to be your soul mate/future business partner/long-lost twin, separated at birth.
What makes this whole “life” thing exhilarating is simply that it has endless possibilities. You are always one choice away from everything changing.
What are you waiting for? Get out there and choose your own adventure!
Keep in mind that no matter what, pizza — and tacos, or both — are always there if any of those steps go sideways. After all, sometimes the most important choice of all is deciding how to spend dinner.
Take the next step in your journey.
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If you enjoy my articles and would like to support my work, consider buying me a coffee at buymeacoffee.com/kaydee. Your support helps me keep creating valuable content for you!
