3rd September 2018, 9am
“Mumma did you have breakfast?” asked my daughter today morning. She’s spending the long weekend at her grandparents’ house assisting them in the Ganesh Chaturthi preparations with all her creativity.
“Yes” I mumbled
“What did you have?” she asked
“Some ladoos and a pear” I replied.
“That’s not proper breakfast.” she said
“I’ve more important things to do now and I’m bored to cook.” I replied and went back to editing a story I’ve been working since last two months.
3rd September 2018, 2pm
“Did you have lunch?” my husband asked.
“Hmmm…no, I’m working on a story and I’m bored right now to cook.” I replied.
“Don’t do that, have something.” he said.
“Ya I will.” I replied and went back to my story.
At 3pm I couldn’t resist and decided to order a burger and some French fries for myself. However just before dialling the number of the café, I paused….and asked myself this question
‘What is most important for me now? Is it the feeling of boredom or health?’
The answer came immediately, ‘Health’ was most important to me. So I decided to park the feeling of boredom aside and immediately cooked for myself. In 45 minutes, rice, moong dal tadka and stir fry brinjal was ready. I sat and relished the meal and then before I could work on my story, I paused and decided to write this blog post for you all.
How do we decide?
I believe that our life is the result of the decisions we take. From the time you wake up and again waking up is also decision, isn’t it?
‘Do I press the snooze button and sleep for 10 more minutes or get up immediately?’
‘Do I skip the breakfast or grab a fruit?’
‘Do I call my parents or avoid the conversation?’
‘Do I text sorry or wait for the other person to apologize?’
‘Do I buy more stuff just because there is sale or do I save that money?’
‘Do I spend time binge watching a series on Netflix or spend that time reading or polishing my skills?’
All these are small yet powerful decisions that we continue to take the whole day. But have you ever thought how do you take decisions? Most of us decide based on how we feel at that moment, isn’t it? Now if you were to reread my story, you’ll see that, I took the decision based on how I felt. However if we focus on how we are feeling, we may not take the appropriate or useful decision for ourselves.
When people feel sad they may decide to drink alcohol or do drugs. When the feeling of sadness refuses to pass away, some may even decide to end their life.
When people feel lonely they may decide to start smoking, just to have a company or may get absorbed in social media. When people feel frustrated they may decide to shout at their loved ones or embrace unhealthy eating habits.
When our feelings overpower us we tend to lose our focus and take decisions that we may regret later.
However in order to live a better life, we have to take better decisions and to take better decisions we have to allow the feelings to pass. At any given point of time when you have to decide something, shift your focus from your feelings and consciously ask yourself these questions.
‘How am I feeling right now?’
‘What is most important to me right now?’
Sometimes you may get the answers immediately like I got today or sometimes you’ll have to wait, but trust me the answer will come. And when the answer will come to you, you will take the appropriate decision that will be useful to you. Those decisions will empower your life and the lives of those attached to you.
How do you take decisions in your life? What are your thoughts on decision-making? I’d love to hear your stories and experiences.
Love and Gratitude,
Gayu