Making the Right Decision
Through life, there are many choices to make and sometimes it’s very hard to know which way to proceed. I honestly believe that even if we make the wrong decision that God can make something good come from it, however, it’s best to make the right decision from the start. So how do we do that? Well, there is a process that I follow that helps me during these time.
I sit down with pen and paper to make a list of pros and cons of each decision I’m trying to make. Some people may prefer to do this on a computer but I seem to have a better thought process when I use the old-fashioned pen and paper method. Sometimes I’m trying to decide between going one way or another and these decisions take a lot more time for me. I must write down the pros and cons of each direction the decision would take me and how it would benefit me or possibly harm me, my family, or finances in some way.
Once I have the list of pros and cons it is much easier to see which choice is the right decision. The problem with this type of reasoning is our emotions also get involved. I can see in black and white on paper what is right but many times my heart and emotions want to do something else. Should we let our emotions come into play? For the most part, the answer is no, however, if there is a moral issue, or issue we just can’t live with, then we need to re-evaluate everything and start over. When this happens it’s usually because we haven’t been as honest as we should be on our pros and cons list.
What About Asking Friends and Family?
This is really kind of a gray area for making decisions. People have ideas and opinions, but let’s face it, they are not living your life and don’t really know what you are dealing with. Some decisions you can solicit advice on but some you should not. Here is an example. Let’s say Susy Q wants to start her own home business selling on eBay. We know people make money on eBay and we already know a lot of people fail, but here is the problem. Most of her family will tell her it won’t work and she should get a “real” job. They basically know she has never made a success of her life so far so why should now be any different.
This kind of negativity is bull and you should stay away from it. Only you know if you have the dream and passion to stick with a project and see it through. There are thousands of people on eBay that started from nothing and many are making over six figures a year! So you or Suzy Q should not be afraid to take a chance on any business if that is your right decision. Don’t let anyone change a right decision you would have made with their input. Stick to your pros and cons list and make the decision. Once you make the decision you need to stick to it.
Keep On Keeping On!
Once you get going in the direction you have chosen there may be obstacles along the way. That is to be expected. When you feel down just remember that without making any decision the results would be a lot worse. Keep the right mindset and make adjustments to your plan as you go along. In the end, you will see you made the right decision!
