Life is filled with so many choices it can be hard to know which road to take. And lacking certainty, we may find ourselves paralyzed at a crossroad – robbed of our ability to be fully present on either road.
Photo by Brendan Church on Unsplash
Each choice we make comes with a cost. To say Yes to one path means we must say No to another.
Turning left means I am not turning right. Saying Yes to marriage means I’m saying No to bachelorhood.
And here is where the challenge comes – we are often faced with multiple good choices.
The choice is easy if there is only one dish we like on the menu, but much more difficult if there are several of our favorite to choose from.
Saying Yes to one cost us many other good options.
How can I know if this is the best choice? What will I miss out on if I commit to this one?
And with no one right path, these thoughts paralyze us.
Maybe it’s best just to keep my options open.
While it is good to think things through before making a major decision, there comes a point when not making a choice becomes our choice. And as with any other, this choice too comes with a cost.
In saying Yes to keeping our options open, we are saying No to the other paths before us. We are deciding to stay in the crossroads of indecision.
As such, we cannot fully give ourselves to one path or the other, but only remain the inertia of ambivalence – hungry because we cannot decide on what to eat from the menu.
The cost here is high. When we avoid making a decisive choice we can only show up halfheartedly.
Committing to one path or another does limit our options, but it also allows us to be wholeheartedly present wherever we are.
Don’t get stuck in the crossroads of life. Take the risk and fully commit.
Your decisive action is the path to life and goodness.
