One Decision Can Change Your Life

Recently I received an email with the title, "One Decision Changed My Life". As I read through the message the author described all of the 'one decisions' that had changed her life.

I started thinking about the 'one decisions' that have changed my life. My decision to marry my first husband, our decision to have my children, my decision to move to Florida, my decision to get divorced, my decision to start my own business, my decision to get remarried, my decision to become a QuickBooks Certified ProAdvisor, my decision to become a coach. Each of these decisions was made with enthusiasm and hope of a better future, followed with challenges, work, and ultimately reward. Each decision helped me grow as a person, becoming who I am today.

The famous self-help guru, Anthony Robbins, says we will do more to avoid pain than gain pleasure. I do believe this is true. If I examine each decision I made I can see the pain point that motivated me. Some of the decisions I made felt like they were out of necessity but as I look back I realize none of them were. Each decision was truly made because of who I am and what I want for my life.

If you are in your 40's (like me) or 50's (almost me) you (and me too) may hesitate to make a decision that would change your life. It seems as we get older, and perhaps wiser, we know that one decision has the power to completely change our life. With our wisdom we seem to have lost some confidence. We are at an age where we realize time is going faster. We fear if we make a mistake there may not be time to recover. We fear that we may lose ground rather than gain. We fear there will be more pain than pleasure. Therefore we stand paralyzed in our lives on the ladder of fear.

Now you may be thinking, "No it is not fear, I am just not as naïve as I was when I was younger." Yes, that is true. We are not as naïve. And you may be thinking, "I have a lot more to lose than when I was young." Again, yes, I agree with you, that most likely, materially speaking, you may have more to lose. You may also be thinking that you don't have time to think about this right now. So with that I will get to the point.

The point is this, your whole life has been impacted by decisions you have made. When you have a few quite moments sit and think about all the 'one decisions' that you have made that have determined the path your life. Analyze the reasons you made each decision. Examine the pain that prompted you and the pleasure you gained. Realize that you still have the power to decide, and you have the wisdom of age and the confidence of experience. With this knowledge you will be prepared to decide the next time you are faced with 'one decision that could change your life.'

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