Is Indecision Holding You Back?

 

“In any moment of decision the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt.

 

Indecision. It was our crutch. We hid behind it, used it as an excuse, and let it control our lives for years.

In the past, we let it kill our inspiration, motivation, forward progress, dreams, and goals. It will also try to kill our relationship. If it doesn’t kill it, it will at least drive a wedge between you a million miles wide.

It takes your confidence and dashes it as glass on concrete. It will take a relationship and twist it and spin it till it chokes itself. It will stomp on you, crush and disable you.

Indecision will kill you and everything you love.

I have always put off making decisions because I didn’t want to face the fear of making a wrong one. I would therefore let other people make my decisions and then I could blame them if things went awry.

I didn’t realize I was doing this, I just thought decisions couldn’t be made if the path ahead was unclear. 

 

“It does not take much strength to do things, but it requires a great deal of strength to decide what to do.” ~ Elbert Hubbard

 

My all to common go to phrases were, “Well, we just have to wait and see what happens.” Or, “We will know when it feels right.”

“I’m waiting on God.” Was also a common one. I have realized, however that most times He is waiting on us.

So what did indecision do for us for the past 7 years? It kept us:

• feeling like victims of life
• confused
• discontent
• angry
• bitter
• disunited

We finally realized our lives were going nowhere. Unless we made a decision as to where we wanted our lives to go, we could dream till the cows came home, but it would never happen.

Since embracing decision making, we have found:

• encouragement
• unity
• focus
• motivation
• we don’t feel like victims of life anymore

 

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a desire fulfilled is a tree of life. ~ Proverbs 13:12 

 

 

Here are 5 ways we have sharpened our decision making skills:

1. Take action! Set a deadline for the decision; don’t drag it out! Most decisions only take a couple days. A life altering decision 3 weeks, maximum. Any more time, and discouragement and self doubt set in.

2. Make a decision quickly and change your mind slowly. This is a sign of all great leaders. I have heard it said that a quick decision is often your best decision and is better than no decision at all.

3. Have your life goals and values clearly defined. Set goals for 1,2,5, and 10 years and then filter all decisions through these goals. They orient you and keep you in line.

 “It’s not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are.” ~ Roy Disney

4. Don’t be afraid of failure. Acknowledge that sometimes you will make a bad decision. This is how we learn and grow in life.

5. Acknowledge that we have been given minds and reasoning abilities for a reason. I have been created to think and decide and move forward.

“We must make the choices that enable us to fulfill the deepest capacities of our real selves.” ~ Thomas Merton

Question: Is indecision holding you back?