Thoughts on How to Face Difficult Decisions

When faced with a difficult decision it is important to know that you always have choices. It is hard to realize there is more than one solution to any given problem. One important life skill to learn is how to find those choices when faced with a difficult decision. With this skill, life becomes easier to keep in balance. More balance means less stress.
 
Think of a situation you are facing and see if any of the comments below can be applied:

1.  Think in terms of either do or do not. A choice available already!
2. The same goes for expressing yourself: “I choose to say something or I choose to say nothing”. Also, for your emotional reactions: “I choose to take offence in this situation or I choose not to react as though this were personal”. “I choose to say ‘no’ when setting a boundary.”
3. You always have the option to leave things as they are and do nothing.
4. Doing “nothing” means you have made the choice “not to take action”. Non-action is still a choice.
5. f you choose to act, then accept it is you who has taken the choice to “do something”.
6. Either way there is always at least one choice.
7. Think of a few scenarios to help you appreciate this is true (to have a cup of tea or not, to say something or not, to buy something or not, to leave a situation or not, to leave the relationship/location/job or not).
8. When you are feeling like you have reached a dead end, ask yourself “what happens if I do nothing?” or,
9. “What happens if I do something?”, then proceed to work out what the choice is.
10. Either way always take responsibility for whatever choice you make.
11. You might not always like the consequences of your choice, so think carefully before you take action. Try to be true to yourself and honour your values. Do what is right for you, not what you think you should do to please others. Follow your intuition whenever possible. It is there to guide us in the right direction, however frequently we ignore its advice.
12. Accept that having a choice is true for absolutely everything. When it comes to things/people/situations we cannot change we still have a choice as to how we react!

 
Personal growth and development go on throughout your life. The life skills you acquire along the way improve the quality of your day-to-day life. With each new life skill you will handle situations that you previously might have struggled with more quickly and with greater ease and confidence. The more practice you have using your life skills, the more part of you they become. With time you might begin to forget that they were acquired skills!



 by Suzie Doscher, Executive Coach focusing on Personal Development, Self-help Author since 2014
Photo credit: Unsplash and Pexels