They quality of our life is a reflection of the quality of our past decisions, and that’s sometimes frustrating because now we know better so now we wish we would have made these decisions differently!
The problem is that obviously it’s impossible!
BUT what is possible is starting to make better decisions today so that in a few months or years we will be thankful instead of resentful towards our past self!
Every day we are making thousands of little decisions but today I’m going to share with you the top 5 from the most basic one to the most profound, but be sure not to skip a head because as i said many times on this channel and as i will probably continue saying “basic is powerful”!
#1 DECISION: Who Is Around Us
So the first decision is what and who we surround ourselves with! The most important part of this question is the people we daily meet and spend time with. Are they empowering us? Are day positive and optimistic? Are they people who are taking responsibility over their lives? Or are they negative, always complaining and putting you down?
In the long term this decision might be the most important decision you ever make, obviously your significant other, but also your friends and your co-workers. I would choose a crappier job with amazing co-workers over and amazing job with crappy co-workers every day of the week. But! We could simply strive to have both!
Whenever I’m talking about this subject I hear that claim that “my family or best friends are negative and putting me down? What can I do? I don’t want to live my life without them”
And that is true for so many people! The answer for this is not necessarily to get rid of negative people but simply add positive ones and making sure we spend as much time as possible with the latter.
This decision to a lower extent is also about the stuff we put around us, if you want to live a healthy life maybe you should consider the amount of chocolate you store at home, if you want to be focused on writing or creating something maybe you should consider adjusting the proximity of your phone.
#2 DECISION: What Are We Doing
The most important part of this decision are your daily habits! If you are eating one chocolate a week you will probably won’t get fat, and if once every 2 weeks you forget to brush your teeth they probably will not fall off
(but I’m not a dentist so do not try this at home!)
If once a month you have a lazy day at work, it won’t kill you.
BUT what you do every day, even the little things will create a huge difference.
They will be listed and linked in the description!
#3 DECISION: What Do We Study?
When we decide to learn something new or to take the time and effort to develop a new skill, or further develop an existing one – We often face a difficult decision.
I want to suggest that the even better is HOW often you study and develop new skills.
See most people only pick a new skill once every couple of years, and some do not study anything new after they graduate from high school or college. If you are one of these people making a very good decision about what you will be studying is crucial.
While in my opinion the better, or should I say the BEYOND Better way is to simply keep on studying keep on learning keep on developing new skills. If you make it a habit to take 2 or 3 courses a year, maybe even if you take some crappy ones it’s not so bad.
And in the long term as Steve Jobs famously said, the dots will be connected and things you thought you will never use will come and give you an advantage.
I started studying software engineering, and then switched to psychology, and since I left the university, I took so many courses, went to so many seminars and workshops… and my recent favorite way of studying e-courses!
It’s AMAZING how easy it is nowadays to learn something new!
#4 DECISION: What Do We Believe and Value?
Almost 5 years ago I published on my website a list of my personal values – asking everyone I know to tell me if I act in a way that is not according to one of them. And in the year after doing that I held a copy of the list in my wallet and in my car. And every morning I was reading it to myself asking if i was loyal to them yesterday and how can I use them today.
Until they became an indistinguishable part of me, of course I’m not perfect and i find myself acting against my values every once in a while, but I try to be aware of it as fast as possible and fix it as fast as possible.
What do I believe and what are my personal values is such an important decision it definitely shapes our entire life.
#5 DECISION: Who Am I?
What kind of person do I want to be.
And after making this decision we can and probably should revisit all other decisions. If that is the kind of person I want to be what are the values and beliefs I must have, What skills and knowledge? What habits and what surrounding…
I know its getting kinda deep for a few minutes YouTube video, but I promised you key and potentially life changing decisions and I want to stay true to my promise.
If you get the value of these last two decisions go and take some time for yourself to take them, If you really want to make sure you make them in the best possible manner I will link in the description a document detailing an exercise you can do to do it in the best way possible.
It will require some time and especially some courage and to step out of your comfort zone, but if you are going for it the link is in the description and I promise you it’s a life changing exercise!
If it’s too weird for you, you can still focus on the three more basic decisions.
Remember BASIC is POWERFUL!
And even if you will improve only one of these decisions – you will see significant advances in your life.
See you next time.
