What makes a good decision?
-Well thought out planning
-Weighing the pros and cons
-Being highly cautious of each and every potential outcome
-Creating a backup plan
What makes a bad decision?
-Impulsivity/just deciding in the heat of the moment
– Not much planning behind it
-Going against your logic
-Not taking as many precautions as you could
-Not being in control of the outcome(s)
-Having no set backup plan
Psychology states that as our stress increases our curiosity to have new experiences fizzles out. And that much of our stress comes simply from our speed.
Lately in this past year the speed of the average lifestyle has had me scared to death. The pursuit of the “American dream” in all of its busyness and stress has exhausted me…so much so that my passions to explore and experience have decreased almost to nothing.
The speed of my life was out of control as I tried to keep up, therefore leading to stress levels that were also out of control. Stress had me burnt out. Stress had me clinging to familiarity, and doing the same comforting thing every weekend to cope with it all. The highlight of my week had shifted quickly from exploring a new hiking spot to exploring the same perimeter of my living room.
What can we define familiarity as? I think familiarity is comfort, safety, and stability. It is predictability and certainty. It is a steady, even heartbeat and steady, even breathing.
The scariest thing I learned about familiarity… is that we might not even know it has a hold of us.
Is it possible that sometimes we stick with some things just because they are familiar to us?
I was fizzling fast, and I knew that with age, time, and more added stress, I would only cling to familiarity and comfort more. The more stress my future brought me, the less likely I would be to live spontaneously, take risks, and make impulsive decisions that had the potential to alter the course of my entire life. The older I got… the “smarter I would get”. The more rational and safe. The more “good” decisions I would make. The more I would look down on impulsive decisions that were not well thought out with a solid game plan and an even better back up plan.
They say that impulse should not be acted on… and that last minute decisions only lead to regret… but I deeply believe in some cases, it can be the exact opposite.
What if these “bad” decisions can set us free from living with the regrets that maybe some “good” decisions will cause. Free from where our over-planning, over preparing, and overthinking will take us.
Sometimes we get so caught up in our own speed, busyness, and stress, that we crave comfort and familiarity to calm us down. Sometimes we get so caught up in the restraints of a familiar life that the only way to break free is to make a last minute, impulsive decision to do something new, scary, and beyond our control.
Clicking “submit application” for the world race impulsively went against all of my better judgment. It seemed to match up with each description in the “bad decision” box. In that single sense it was the worst decision I had ever made. I was raised to make better cautioned and well planned out choices than that.
I will honor my parents and family’s lessons in every other area of my life. I will be 15 minutes early to every interview, I will have back up plans incase I don’t get the job, I’ll even try my best to keep some money stored away just incase.
But in this one area of my life, where experience, exploration, passion, love, and faith lay… I will willingly ignore everything I have ever been taught.
Good Category Decisions have gotten me jobs, an education, good grades, a predictable schedule, and most importantly a sense of stability in my life.
Bad Category Decisions have gotten me closer in my relationships, have caused leaps of faith in my walk with God, and have heightened happiness in my life and the lives of others. They have brought me to Haiti, brought my family closer together, brought God back into so many lives of those around me, and will soon be taking me to 11 different countries to serve others and teach them about God.
Sure… some good decisions are necessary to stay afloat in today’s society…
But can you remember the last time you made a “bad” one?
