How many decisions has your family made this week? I’ll bet the answer is twenty or more:
The options for “want-to-dos” and “should-dos” can quickly burst all time boundaries. Before you decide to go crazy, go over a few criteria for discerning the best decision. (Thanks to Rick Warren, author and pastor, for creating the blog post series the following list was based on.)
Under stress, an amazing number of people grab the most expedient option, regardless of whether it matches what they say they believe in. Don’t get into this habit, or someday soon you’ll be wondering how you made such a mess of things. (One “too small to matter” decision after another, that’s how.)
The decision that violates your personal values has an even blacker sheep of a sibling: the decision that rationalizes violating basic integrity. Especially when you have children to set an example for, remember that asking them to tell “little white lies” for you is encouraging them to lie to you.
Does it cultivate patience and diligence? Does it present opportunities to develop your natural skills for everyone’s good?
You hear it said of some people that “he just lives for golf” or “she lives only for getting ahead at the office.” There’s nothing wrong with enjoying a favorite leisure activity—or your job—but life is out of balance if anything dominates your time and thoughts to the point you neglect relationships or self-care.
Even wholesome things can be bad choices if:
If you’re a person who gets mostly stress and self-doubt from trying too hard to pick the one right option, you needn’t spend too long on this one. But before committing to an activity, give it this quick review:
And remember: while it may feel painful to discard a good option completely, it hurts worse—and accomplishes less good—when you say “yes” to everything and wind up rushing through everything.
Teach your children, as well as yourself, the art of wise decision-making while you have this opportunity to influence young minds. Make the decision now to keep that commitment high on your priority list!