The Power of a Decision
or "how you can change your life in a split-second"
“I can’t do it”
It’s a phrase I have said many times. You’ve undoubtedly heard it from others as well.
Whether we are referring to quitting smoking, losing weight, breaking an addiction, having healthier relationships, building the business of your dreams or any other number of goals one might have, saying “I can’t do it” is often provided as a reason for not accomplishing goals.
It means we have surrendered ourself to our circumstances. It says the circumstances are more powerful then we are.
In many instances, there are some mighty powerful circumstances that seem like insurmountable obstacles. They appear as sheer rockface mountains and impenetrable brick walls. No amount of will can break through.
And that might feel like the truth.
But is it, really?
When we look at the lives of people who have overcome circumstances, there is a common thread we see in all of them.
They all made a decision to change. It all started with a decision.
Whether the decision was made as a simple choice to be done with cigarettes or a more complex reality that telegraphed “if I don’t stop this behavior I am going to die”, a decision is still a decision.
It communicates that you are done doing what you have been doing, and now you are going to do something else. Something new. Something different. All with the goal of relieving the pain you are experiencing from NOT having made the decision sooner.
In no way does this mean such decisions are easy. It takes a lot of self-awareness to not only make a life-changing decision, but to have the fortitude to see it through.
It’s true that people don’t change until the pain of staying the same becomes greater than the pain of change. We human beings can sustain a huge amount of self-inflicted pain from our habits.
I have been there countless times.
I’ve felt the despair of feeling like I am locked into an addiction with no way out. I have experienced the mental and physical despair from abusing my body, not thinking that I could ever pull myself together and have the health I desired.
And I don’t feel like I am anything special. There’s no magic button for making a decision to change..You just have to want it badly enough.
Someone can say they want it with every fiber of their being and still not behave as though they do. Sometimes we need a little help. That’s where friends, family and accountability can play a role. But that person still has to make the decision to do the new thing they want to do by asking for help.
The bottom line is this.
If you say you want something but don’t take actions congruent with getting the thing you want, you are demonstrating that you don’t want that thing more than you want whatever you currently have.
It doesn’t start with a desire to change. New Years resolutions are chock-full-of this.
It doesn’t start with trying to change. As Yoda said, “there is no try, only do”
It starts with the decision to change. And it has to come from deep inside you. It must be real and meaningful and resolute.
A decision begins with the end in mind. It already sees the result it wishes to accomplish. It’s not a matter of “if” the goal will be reached, but when.
It’s simply living out the decision day-by-day as your only reality.
Making a change can be simple, but not easy.
However, in my experience, once a decision has been made it does seem to get easier. Perhaps it’s because I know where I’m going. Now I just need to follow the roadmap to get there.
What tomorrow do you want that you don’t have today?
It all really begins with a decision.