“Be decisive. The road of life is paved with flat squirrels who couldn’t make a decision!”—Unknown
According to Brian Tracy, “Decisiveness is a characteristic of high-performing men and women. Almost any decision is better than no decision at all.” Decisiveness is a leadership trait. It is crucial in sport, in business, and in pretty much anything else. (I’d love to see more decisive drivers on the road, myself.) So, why do we tend to be so indecisive?
I think it goes back to four destructive enemies of faith –fear, doubt, anxious care, and human reasoning—about which I recently wrote. We let these take the wheel, and we avoid committing to a decision. But where does indecisiveness ever get us? Nowhere, of course.
It is time to take charge and turn fear, doubt, anxious care, and human reasoning into positive energies. It is time to make these self-assurance, certainty, peace of mind, and trust.
If we face a challenging circumstance, we can’t hem and haw and put off making a decision. Remember: “No stalling”! Take your shot. If you miss, recover and shoot again. Keep shooting until you score.
Being decisive does not mean one decides without getting all the facts. Quite the contrary. One needs to quickly size up the situation and make a decision. Decisive action breeds confidence and averts reflexive action.
The other night, I observed my son in wrestling practice. He had no offense and was weak on defense. As a result, he had to expend tremendous amount of energy fighting in the bottom position to avoid getting pinned. He would have exerted far less energy, if he had to confidence to shoot—had he been decisive and assertive.
Life is like this. We lack the will and the confidence to attack life. As a result, we let life kick us around. No more! Time to take command and be on the offensive. It is time to determine what we want and go for it.
Make decisiveness a part of your morning routine. Awaken to the day with a sense for what you want to accomplish and take the bull by the horns. This is your life. Don’t let another tell you how to live it. Know your Purpose and live it! Be (extra)ordinary! Carpe momento!
“The way to develop decisiveness is to start right where you are, with the very next question you face.”—Napoleon Hill