How to Approach Big Decisions
We’ve all had the experience of having a big decision weighing on our psyche. We think about it constantly, evaluating it from every conceivable angle, creating various scenarios in our minds, and often playing a mental movie, highlighting the ramifications of making the “wrong” call.
The process can be emotionally draining and it’s almost never fun. But what happens after you’re made the decision? Oftentimes, you feel lighter as though it doesn’t matter if you made the right decision or not—you’re just happy you don’t have to think about it anymore. Making the decision often lifts the pressure from our minds.
Is the psychic tension intrinsic to the decision-making process itself? Or is it a function of our resistance and drive to control the outcome of events? With honest observation, it becomes apparent that we are creating the tension within us.
What if there was another way of approaching big decisions and major problems that didn’t compound the stress and anxiety associated with the unknown?
What if instead of “handling” our decisions, we allowed them to handle themselves? I’m not advocating passivity; I’m suggesting we tend to get in our own way when handling stressful situations and making decisions. You still need to do your homework; you just don’t need to hold the anxiety related to the future’s uncertainty.
The alternative approach to making big decisions is to call upon Divine Guidance, the Inner Teacher, intuition, or whatever term feels most appropriate to you. Then, listen intently with all your heart. Trust that the answer or the most suitable course of action will present itself.
All that is needed is faith, courage, discipline, and patience. Patience is especially difficult for those of us living in the digital age. Yet it is our ability to quiet the mind and sit in stillness that allows true intuition to reveal itself. Haste blocks the answers we seek. Our want-it-and-need-it-now mentality is part of the reason big decisions weigh on our psyche.
Practically speaking, it helps to take time out each day to be still and stay quiet. It’s a discipline few appreciate and even fewer master. But the rewards are plentiful. You no longer have to sweat making decisions—big or small. You no longer have to agonize or fear making the “wrong” decision. You can allow things to unfold as they will.
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