We are all faced with so many decisions every day so the ability to make the right choice, the choice that is good for us, the choice that will bring us closer to a desired future, is essential to our wellbeing. Choice is also within our control, even if the circumstances are not always ours to choose.
I discovered I always have choices even if sometimes it’s only a choice of attitude.”
Judith M. Knowlton
Choices can determine our future because whatever we choose has a consequence attached to it. No matter what we choose, there is some outcome attached to it and it is up to us to make sure we make the right choice that gives us our desired outcome.
Whilst we should not make important decisions hastily, we also cannot put if off for too long. Not choosing is a choice in itself. We can try and buy ourselves time or try and opt out of having to choose, but this in itself has consequences. What we are not changing we are choosing. Delaying the choice does not make it go away.
How to make good choices:
- Know yourself and know what you want, really want.
- Think about how your choice will impact all aspects of your life, for example how your personal life could be impacted by decisions you make about your professional goals.
- Make an educated choice by thinking future-based, taking into account all options, all consequences known to you in this moment.
- Make a list of the possible pros and cons of your choice, this will make it easier to compare all the possible outcomes.
- A list will also help you to prioritise which choices and decisions need to be made first.
- Remember we cannot perfectly predict the future and no-one has all the information available, so work with the best information available at the time and be prepared to adjust. Make yourself fit and flexible to adapt to changing circumstances.
- May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears – Nelson Mandela
8 Surprising things you CAN control
- You can decide where you want to live.
- You can decide what you want to eat.
- You can decide who gets your attention.
- You can decide who deserves a response and who doesn’t.
- You can decide where your boundaries begin and end.
- You can decide what to focus on.
- You can decide what kind of people you surround yourself with.
- You can decide what kind of person you want to be.
Mel Robbins