Directing Your Life through Your Decisions

“Watch your thoughts, they become your words; watch your words, they become your actions; watch your actions, they become your habits; watch your habits, they become your character; watch your character, it becomes your destiny.” — Lao Tzu

Change is the ONLY constant.

Whether or not we are conscious of all the changes that are happening around us and within us, change is occurring.

Weather changes, time changes, life changes, people change. Change is the only constant thing about life.

I can’t say that I’ve ever thought about the daily changes to my car day by day but I can say with absolute certainty that there are changes that have occurred and continue to occur.

Whether the front windshield is now 0.000001% less resistant or whether the tread on my tires is now 0.001mm more worn out, change is occurring.

Now imagine how much less resistant my front windshield might be if before I parked my car, I asked one of my neighbor’s children to jump up and down on it. Or imagine how much more the tread would wear out if I decided to purposely squeal the tires every time I was driving my car that day.

MAJOR difference, right?

We do that all the time in other areas.

Detrimental Decisions

We don’t often understand the impact of our decisions.

We’ll overwork ourselves in the office and stay until 8:00 at night because “the work needs to get done.”

Or we’ll skip the gym for a few weeks because “we’re too tired”

And while we may not notice or feel the changes right away — there are things that are happening beneath the surface.

We need to be aware of what our decisions are doing physically and nonphysically.

If we skip the gym because we are “too tired” our subconscious mind may begin to associate that feeling of too tired with us every time we think about going to the gym — and that’s a lot harder to change, because it’s not conscious.

Prudent Preparation

“You cannot overestimate the unimportance of practically everything.” — John Maxwell

“Your entire career, your success will be determined by your ability to make sense of things that don’t make sense.” — Grant Cardone

It’s true, many of the things that we do every single day will not have a long-lasting impact on our lives as a whole.

But it’s also true that many of the decisions that we make have a long-lasting impact on our psychology and thinking.

You’re going to have to live with yourself for the entirety of your life — you might as well treat yourself well.

What happens when some of the decisions that you make are not positive ones and they harm you?

That’s not good. That part is obvious. But beyond that, everything compounds.

Neglecting your exercise for a year while you pay off some extra debt and work 3 jobs won’t kill you; neglecting exercise for a decade might.

Smoking cigarettes for a few months during a stressful time might not kill you; continuing to smoke anytime you’re stressed for the rest of your life might.

Saying yes to whatever your fiancé wants for the wedding might not harm your self-confidence; never saying no for the entirety of your marriage might.

Unseen Ripple Effects

There are almost always effects that we cannot see. Effects on others, effects on ourselves, and effects on our environment.

There is ALWAYS movement beneath the surface.

Every single decision carries importance — if not just for us then also for others.

We must be intentional. Take care.

“Actions show, words tell. Actions speak, words whisper. Actions prove, words argue. Actions are, words could be.” — Harrison Wendland