Life is so full of decisions that have to be made on a daily basis.\u00a0 Some are small and insignificant.\u00a0 Yet, some have huge impact on our lives and our futures as well as the people around us.\u00a0 So how do you make the right decisions?<\/p>\n
There are times the decisions can be made by simply looking at the black and white of what is right and what is wrong and then choosing the right thing.<\/p>\n
There are other times when the facts point to what is right and what is wrong, but we get all tangled up in our own emotions and we allow those emotions to make us question or rationalize the decision in order to avoid dealing with the emotions we might be feeling (for example, you know the person you are dating is bad for you but at least they keep you from feeling lonely\u2026or you know you should help that stranger in need but you are feeling embarrassed to approach them\u2026or you know you should fire a person from work because they are doing a poor job but you feel sorry for them because they are struggling in their life\u2026you get the picture?\u00a0 In those situations it is critical to take the emotion out of your decision and base the decision on only the facts of what is right and what is wrong and then go with the thing that is right, ignoring that it might be emotionally tough to do.\u00a0 When you can do that you will always feel better in the end even if you struggled to get through it.<\/p>\n
The next type of decision is the one where you think you might be right but you doubt yourself because perhaps you worry you don\u2019t have all the facts?\u00a0 Or it could be that you doubt your own ability to make the right choice and insecurities keep from you from being able to decide.\u00a0 Or it could be that you are afraid to make the choice because you simply don\u2019t want to end up being wrong.\u00a0 It\u2019s never fun to be wrong, so often time\u2019s people avoid making the decision at all \u2013 which I will say I think is one of the most dangerous ways to handle things.\u00a0 Inevitably by not making a decision you make a decision.\u00a0 Things happen and opportunities are missed.\u00a0 Thus, making no decision made the decision for you.\u00a0 So how can you avoid falling into this trap?<\/p>\n
Lastly, there are the times that there isn\u2019t a clear right and wrong decision.\u00a0 Not because you have emotions involved, not because you are afraid to decide, but because there may simply be two decisions that are both good options and could both be right \u2013 how do you decide then?\u00a0 An example of this would be choosing between two careers that could both be good options\u2026or choosing to spend time with a child versus choosing time to spend with a spouse\u2026both great things to do, so how do you decide?<\/p>\n
I don\u2019t have all the answers on this but I will share with you what has helped me to get through tough decisions in my life.\u00a0 If there is a clear right and wrong decision I force myself to always choose the right thing.\u00a0 I don\u2019t allow myself to even consider the wrong thing as an option and that makes my choice easier.\u00a0 Next, if I know I am struggling emotionally with a decision I try to sit back and look at the hard core facts, without my emotions involved, and if doing that allows me to see a clear right and wrong then I again choose the right.\u00a0 If I come across a decision where I feel insecure or uncertain or for whatever reason or if I come across a decision where it feels like more than one answer could be right \u2013 well that is when I get on my knees and pray about it for starters.\u00a0 The other thing I try to do is to find a quiet place to step away and just sit and let my mind go clear and I listen.\u00a0 I know that probably sounds weird, but the fact is that when I try to sit and just listen it allows my mind to be open to things and it allows me to really be at peace as I consider my options.\u00a0 And then I trust what answers come to me. Sometimes the answers come through a feeling; sometimes they come from a thought in my head that pops in there suddenly; other times it comes from a gut instinct that I should go with one option over the other.\u00a0 And then there is the most important part \u2013 once I get an instinct or a feeling about something I have to learn to TRUST IT!\u00a0 Over the years my executive team can testify to you that every time I had a gut feeling but then didn\u2019t follow it, I got burned.\u00a0 Every single time.\u00a0 To the point that if I ever said to my execs, \u201cI have a gut feeling we should go with this, but I am thinking we will go with that\u201d\u00a0 they would immediately stop me and say \u201cNo freaking way\u201d\u00a0 Even they had seen the consequences every time I went against my gut and because of their pushing they helped me to really learn to trust my instincts and stop doubting myself.<\/p>\n
Learning to make good choices and learning to trust your instincts are critical in life. They are especially critical when you hold positions of leadership because so many people are counting on you to do the right thing.\u00a0 Never let yourself hold back on making a decision out of fear, and never allow yourself to make the wrong decision based on fear.\u00a0 Both of those will always turn out bad in the end. You have to be willing to step up and make decisions and as long as in your heart you are always trying to do the right thing, then have confidence in that and move forward.<\/p>\n
One of my favorite songs is sung by Peter Cetera and I love it because the words are perfect for reminding us how to make good decisions.\u00a0 It\u2019s called One Clear Voice:<\/p>\n
One Clear Voice<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n The whole world is talking One clear voice I\u2019m always searching One clear voice As I draw closer to the last day of\u00a0transitioning\u00a0my role of CEO of MCG,\u00a0I want to reassure all of you, especially those of you who have the added responsibility of leadership roles,\u00a0that every single one of you has\u00a0the ability to make all the right choices as you move forward.\u00a0 I have so much confidence in every one of you and I believe in you wholeheartedly.\u00a0 That is why we brought you into the organization.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 You are better than you have any idea of,\u00a0trust me, I know.\u00a0 I have\u00a0watched all of you for eight plus years now and you\u00a0are absolutely amazing!\u00a0\u00a0 All you need to do\u00a0is choose the right and\u00a0trust your own instincts. And know that I believe in you.<\/p>\n “You are the CEO of your own life, start making executive decisions today!” -Stephen Luke<\/p>\n ~Amy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Life is so full of decisions that have to be made on a daily basis.\u00a0 Some are small and insignificant.\u00a0 Yet, some have huge impact on our lives and our futures as well as the people around us.\u00a0 So how do you make the right decisions? There are times the decisions can be made by […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":93,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[97,34,38,27,84],"class_list":["post-1336","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-decisions","tag-integrity","tag-leadership","tag-self-confidence","tag-trust"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1336","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1336"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1336\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1638,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1336\/revisions\/1638"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/93"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1336"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1336"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.amyreesanderson.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1336"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nDrowning out my voice
\nHow can I hear myself
\nWith all this noise
\nBut all this confusion
\nJust disappears
\nWhen I find a quiet place
\nWhere I can hear<\/p>\n
\nCalling out for me to listen
\nOne clear voice
\nWhispers words of wisdom
\nI close my eyes
\n\u2019till I find what I\u2019ve been missing
\nIf I\u2019m very still, I will hear
\nOne clear voice<\/p>\n
\nFor which path to take
\nSometimes I\u2019m so afraid
\nTo make mistakes
\nFrom somewhere inside me
\nStronger than my fears
\nJust like the sound of music
\nTo my ears, I hear<\/p>\n
\nCalling out for me to listen
\nOne clear voice
\nWhispers words of wisdom
\nI close my eyes
\n\u2019till I find what I\u2019ve been missing
\nIf I\u2019m very still, I will hear
\nOne clear voice<\/p>\n