Tips to make better choices

We all make choices every day, some more difficult than others, and most of the time we don't even realize how demanding and important the act of choosing can be. Have you ever stopped for a minute to realize how powerful decision-making is and how it can largely impact our lives?

Where we are in life is mostly a result of our choices, so there are no insignificant choices, for example, what you decide to wear on a certain day can have a great impact on how you feel and act, affecting your well-being, career, relationships, and so on. Imagine that you have an important meeting, what you chose to wear will greatly change how you feel and position yourself, which will influence your reactions and outcome. This is why choosing is power and you can use it to empower yourself, to change your life. Change is constant so we are called to make a decision regularly and life doesn't wait for you to feel ready, things happen no matter what and how we react to them is key.

Making good choices is also about asking the right questions like, is your choice aligned with your values, does it serve you or others, will the decision affect your future self? How? This will give you a glimpse of the possible outcomes and consequences, therefore helping to assess if it's the right choice for you and thus improve your life.

Another key aspect to have in consideration is, are you grounded when making the decision? How do you feel? Maybe excited or anxious, sad or happy, these are all things to have in consideration when making a decision. Feeling excited and happy may lead you to overconfidence, while if you are sad or anxious you may not take any risks even if the outcome is most likely highly rewarding. Evaluate your emotions and try to balance them and be reasonable. 

A different example relates to confirmation bias, you may feel overconfident when trying to assess how long it will take you to complete a task and therefore end up working late. This is something that happens to most of us, underestimating the time that we need to complete a certain task and it's really easy to resolve with a timer app. Start tracking your time to better assess how long you will need to finish a certain task.

Also, it is wise to identify the risks like how some bad habits can affect you in the long term, this may help you to make better decisions, aligned with the life you want. For example, if you wish to age gracefully, you can choose to exercise regularly and to nourish your body and soul frequently. This choice to take action will be beneficial in the long run.

Another great way to improve your decision-making skills is to reflect on your mistakes constructively to understand how you can make better decisions next time. Mistakes are a great way to learn, it may not be pleasant to think about them but if you look at them with an analytic approach you will be able to identify ways of improving your response in different situations.

You can also try to sleep on it to find a balance between your gut and reason, while you're sleeping your brain continues to function and puts all the daily information in the right place. So if you are unsure about your decision just wait until the next day to decide, if possible of course! A tip, place an amethyst on your bedside table, this beautiful stone helps with intuition and connection with the higher self.

And remember, 'We are our choices.' ― Jean-Paul Sartre.