You’re asked to dinner and you say you’ll get back to them… but you don’t.

You know you need a new washing machine, but you put it off.

You have 2 great opportunities, but you choose neither because you don’t want to make the “wrong” decision.

You know you need a vacation, but you don’t plan anything.

You see this great opportunity for yourself, but it makes you nervous, so you don’t respond with a yes or a no.

You conveniently avoid telling someone you care about “no” because you’re afraid to hurt their feelings.

If you can relate to any of these, you’ve mastered the art of deciding by not making a decision. 

I know this art – I did it for years.

It’s easier that way, not making a decision. 

But what do you truly want – for life to be easy or for life to be rewarding and fulfilling?

My guess is you want it to be the latter, and that’s why you’re here. 

What happens when we avoid making a decision? We literally give our voice away to the ethers. It floats away like the wind, it erodes our sense of empowerment and self-confidence, and can even affect our self-esteem.

It may seem easier, but underneath it affects how you feel about yourself, your ability to make powerful choices for yourself (it’s an important piece of moving out of feeling stuck), and drains your energy to not decide. 

I’m going to say this with a strong voice: Take the bull by the horns. Stop waiting to decide. Decide once you know the answer. And if you don’t know the answer, listen to what you’re heart says and trust yourself. You have the answer within you.

4 Decision Making Tips:

1. Practice in small stages. Choose one thing you’ve made a decision about, but haven’t acted on, take a deep breath, and do it. Take whatever that step is to make your decision active.
    
2. When you’re afraid to make the wrong decision, choose one and notice what you feel in your body once you’ve decided. If it’s tightness, change your mind and choose the opposite. If it feels light in your body, then you’re on the right track. If you need, take a few days to do this process – and then decide!
    
3. Actively respond to someone who has asked you to make a decision. Either a yes or no. It takes courage, so take a breath, step into the fear you’re feeling, and say yes or no.
    
4. Set a date for the next trip you’re going to take after the holiday’s that’s just for you. That is making a powerful decision for yourself.

Be kind with yourself with all of this. Remember, I did this too, and I still continue to work on it. We’re perfectly imperfect in our humanness!

Categories: Self-Organization