We Are The Choices We Make

“I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions.” — Stephen Covey

Our existence comprises of choices that we make. From drinking milk in the morning to attending your least favorite lecture, from buying a blue shirt instead of a green shirt at your favorite store to adding an extra spoon of sugar in your coffee, from painting your bedroom wall pink to finding the balls to speak to your crush — you take a plethora of decisions, make choices, and bear the consequences. Choices are everywhere. Despite our parents making most of our decisions for our better and brighter future when we’re very young, we start learning how to choose between the options placed strategically in front of us and make decisions. Every man fortunately or unfortunately goes through the fate of decisions.

The choices you make and the decisions you take have a long lasting impact on your life. This is cliché but it doesn’t diminish the truism in that statement. Our lives are a series of choices we’ve made so far. We live with those choices for the rest of our lives — and believe me when I say this, the rest of your life is a pretty long period. Whether you feel it immediately or not, your life is being shaped by the choices you are making in the present. Whether you decide to go to college or take that music class you always wanted to or get your hair colored in shades of rainbow or travel to foreign lands alone — it’s your choice. It is all your choice. It has always been your choice. The past is unalterable yet offers you an insight on the mistakes you made. The present is a gift you need to make the best of, and the core of your future comprises each and every decision you have ever taken.

Sometimes, we make bad choices and often brim with misery and regret when we realize our mistake. That’s part of being human. When I flip through my diary and go over the deeds my past self had once engaged in, instead of being ashamed of who I was or what I’ve done, I want to be proud of myself and my choices. I want to be happy with what I wore, what I said, what I read, what I ate, what I listened to, and what I did. And this is only possible if I think before I make choices in the present. We can’t undo the past, but we can always learn from it. Choices are the building blocks of our lives and despite all the mistakes one makes, a new day brings with itself new opportunities and a whole new world of choices.

There may be times we make choices that cause our path to become tough, confusing and uncertain. Our path seems like a series of hills and valleys, there is never any balance. When this happens, we should stop and examine the choices we made that have taken us down this path. We should evaluate those choices and identify alternatives or new choices that will bring us back to our true path-the one we originally created. Once again we shape our lives by the choices we make.

To assist in making choices, these are perhaps some thoughts and criteria to always keep in mind:
1. What is important and valuable to you? What you value may not be of much import to someone else. So know what you value most.
2. Don’t lose focus on your future. Many people tend to make choices based on life as it appears right now instead of looking to the future. Does your choice and its ramifications stay within the goals that you have set for yourself for the future?
3. Have you looked at all the alternatives and considered different scenarios? Sometimes you just might consider a different outcome.
4. How important is this decision, and are you willing to work on it? Don’t get caught up with how important a choice is, but — better yet — what a positive impact this has on your life.
5. Don’t forget to use your “intuition” for your choice instead of your head.
Dr. Bobbie Stevens, in an article titled ‘The Importance of Choice’s on the unlimitedfutures.org website, shared an interesting point about our choices and the impact it has on our life:
"It is so important to understand that we are all making choices all the time, even when we chose not to choose we have still made a choice. It is our choices that determine our experiences. The choices we are making today will show up in our experiences in the future. Unless we are willing to take full responsibility for ourselves and the choices we make, we have no control over our lives. We have been given all the power to create our experiences through our choices, but if we believe that outside forces are responsible for our choices we give away all the power we have. Sometimes making the right choice or even knowing how to choose is very difficult, but it is vitally important to understand that you are in charge of your own life if you chose to think for yourself. If you chose not to take charge, you will experience the consequences of that choice, and simply be blown about by life like a leaf in the wind."
When you have made a decision, be ready to face its consequences: good and bad. It may take you to a place of promise or to a land of problems. But the important thing is that you have chosen to live your life instead of remaining a bystander or a passive audience to your own life. Whether it is the right decision or not, only time can tell. But do not regret it whatever the outcome. Instead, learn from it and remember that you always have the chance to make better decisions in the future.

The inspiring U.S preacher, Joyce Meyer in her article titled ‘The Power of a Right Choice: It's a Matter of Life or Death’ further shared some great insights on the subject:
“I wonder how many decisions we make every day. I believe it’s probably hundreds. We decide whether or not to get out of bed, what we’ll eat, what we’ll do, what we’ll think about, what we’ll say…and on and on. While it may seem like many of our daily choices are not that significant, it’s important to understand that they do matter. Every choice is a seed you sow, and those seeds produce fruit in your life – either for life or for death. And if we want to have the life Jesus died to give us – an abundant life full of real peace and joy – we need to make wise choices. Consistently Good Choices Lead to the Good Life. Let me give you an example of what I’m talking about on a practical level. I go to bed at 9 o’clock every night and am asleep by 9:30. I get up at 5:30 and spend two to three hours with God every morning before I get ready for the day and walk out the door. I do this because I need to spend time with God to be the Christian I want to be and treat people the way I want to treat them. Also, I need consistent sleep or I will feel bad physically. I’m in my late sixties, and I can honestly say I feel great most of the time. In fact, I can do more than some people I know who are younger than me. This is the fruit of making wise choices in my daily life. Think about this: How can you change and what could your life be like if you made better choices right now? Don’t put it off any longer.”

Remember that the choice is yours. It has always been. We are free to choose our actions, but we are not free to choose the consequences of our actions. Again, a striking thought about choices is that to not make any is to make a choice, and we must always assess what could have been by choices we knew enough to make at the time but did nothing about. It could be investing in a business, acquiring a property, going to college or pursuing a career path. At times, we never know what might have been because of the choices we have decided to follow. Indeed, we might never know. We just learn to live in peace with the road we have travelled by.

Penultimately, always remember and bear in mind that life is a series of choices, and most choices are based on two things: love or fear. Both can disguise in different ways along your path. Both can also masquerade in different ways along your journey of life. Make the choices in your life today never compromising the most important things in life., and sustain a happy life during your earthly mission. Just think: The choice you make today could make not only your life happier, but make a better world in which we live. Choice is serious business. Choose to take your life choices seriously. Life is a choice. It is YOUR life. Choose consciously, choose wisely, choose honestly. Choose happiness.

Culled from my book 'The Path Less Travelled' (https://www.amazon.com/Path-Less-Travelled-Reflections-Learning/dp/1540663507/ref=la_B01NAFINA0_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1518345927&sr=1-1)