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Just make this annoying thing go away.
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Just make this annoying thing go away.
You know what? I don’t blame you. I’m doing the same thing.
Sometimes we wait forever on taking that next action. You think it’ll just go away if we delay long enough, that someone else will decide for you.
You’re thinking that what you’ve got is better than the chance of screwing it up and losing everything. Don’t sell that stock. Don’t move for the job opportunity. It’s too much risk.
And man, that question can paralyze you. It can leave you wondering what to do for a long time, refusing to do anything whatsoever, on the off chance that you may make a mistake.
Keep going like this and you’ve become a kind of agoraphobic about decisions– you stay in the status quo forever, thinking what you have is good enough. Hey, this job isn’t so bad, you don’t need to go look for something new.
You know what? It’s better to just decide.
To those who stalled came the paychecks, the stability, and you know, that’s actually pretty respectable. Nothing wrong with taking care of your family and living well.
But to those of us in history who dared went the spoils. Sometimes, they had a huge impact on the world, or even just on themselves. For every decision they made, they slowly made themselves into a leader– someone who could be counted on to act.
Hey, they screwed up too, sure– that’s in the nature of decisions– but they also grew and helped others achieve more. They sometimes did great things.
Maybe most importantly, they found out that they could. They realized that the flame, though it was only inside them, could light real fires. And these fires helped lead them (and others) in the darkness.
So you know what? Let’s all start deciding. Just a little. Ok?
Filed by Julien at 11:51 am under random
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Proverb: “He who dares wins.”
Kenneth Cole: “Today is not a dress rehearsal.”
Prover: “The worst decision is indecision.”
Richard Back: “Some choices we live not only once but a thousand times over, remembering them for the rest of our lives.”
George S. Patton: “Be willing to make decisions. That’s the most important quality in a good leader.”
And finally…
Marcel Proust: “All our final decisions are made in a state of mind that is not going to last.”
Perfect timing. Really perfect timing.
*Hug* Thanks.
i hear you. in the last 6-or-so years, nearly all my friends have become ‘independent’ (ie: freelance). i’m teetering on either side of the fence, pretty much weekly. some scary stuff, but exciting too.
always good to hear a bit of encouragement, though, you know?
Hi Julien,
This is an important topic, because so many people are paralyzed (or, as I tend to refer to it, “stuck”) and unable to move forward.
Life’s hard work, and sometimes our choices don’t work out. But failure is acceptable (and the lessons learned often invaluable). And I agree with you, acting–doing something–is a lot better than sitting on the sidelines.
Thanks for writing about this,
Daria
This is a good start, but I was hoping that someone could convince me further. If you stay where you are, you are guaranteed something, some stability, some stasis, some whatever. If you “decide”, to use the word as it’s used here, you may end up climbing Everest, but you also may end up falling off the mountain. Is it not nobler then to take the option with the guarantee of some sort of payoff, versus one that has the option of a huge payoff but just as much chance for losing it all?
Nicely put. All the rejections the publishing industry can hand out can’t feel as bad as I do for not sending my manuscript off.
Thanks :)
Rebecca
just when you think you are alone….and the ONLY one NOT deciding.
thank you for this uplifting, motivating post.
i have DECIDED….
Just exactly what I was floundering on.. Thanks for the push back into the water.
You are exactly right, the inability to make a decision plays a big role in putting things off.
Putting things off is nothing more than the habit of procrastination.
“Procrastination is an outward expression of an internal conflict preventing you from taking action” – The Race to Success
It happens because you:
* don’t know why you should take the action or what happens if you do
* you know what to do but not how to do it
* you are stuck and don’t know how to get unstuck
Julien,
Perfect timing! This is just what I needed, a little kick in the deciding ass. Can’t tell you how much I appreciate you sharing your thoughts here.
Joe
Thanks, I really needed this nudge. One BIG important project that I hide from will begin shortly.
Kelly
Indecision leads to inaction which leads to the worst one of them all, complacency… thanks for the post-holiday kick in the rump!
Why do we complain this is true with clients, but never see it in ourselves?