Deciding to Decide

We make decisions all day long. Most are easy. What to eat; which route to take; whether to answer that email now or later. Then there are the decisions that stay with us - the ones we discuss with people we trust and sometimes avoid altogether. We often expect decisions to come with certainty. They don't.

Important decisions are made without having all the information or knowing exactly what will happen. At some point, we have to make the best decision we can with what we know. I've made plenty of decisions in my life that I may make differently today. I'm sure you can make that claim as well. That's not regret; it's experience.

Time vs Avoid 

Sometimes we need more information. Sometimes we're simply afraid of being wrong. Not making a decision is still a decision. Staying in the same job; hoping the relationship that isn't working suddenly works; or continuing down a road we know isn't going to end well, has consequences.

Good decisions aren't always popular. Sometimes we have to say no, change direction, walk away, or admit we were wrong. The important part is owning the decision. If it works, learn from it. If it doesn't, learn from that too. Blaming someone else doesn't make us better at making decisions. We don't need to get every decision right. There's rarely a perfect decision. It's also the most frustrating.

 Now, what's for lunch?

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Vän Friends Amie

When I was younger, friends were the people you hung out with, went to parties with, played sports with, worked with, and you didn't overthink. Hey you like hockey? Me too. Let's hang out. You saw them all the time; you knew who your friends were.  

Some of the people I was closest to are no longer part of my everyday life and I'm not in their life. We've moved on; met other people; traveled other journeys. I wonder how my buddy Andy is doing these days. We were hooked at the shoulder for all those road hockey games and listening to new albums. Then we grew up and did life stuff. But if we bumped into each other tomorrow, I suspect we'd have awesome stories to share!  

Ageless connections 

I’ve also made great friends later in life. Some started as colleagues or clients and, somewhere along the way, became people I genuinely care about. My circle has changed over the years. I'm sure yours has as well. I'm lucky to know a handful of people who know me, make me laugh, tell me when I'm being an idiot, and are somehow happy to sit around a table for a couple of hours and share time.

That's what I appreciate about real friendship. You don't have to perform or keep score. You just know. And after all these years, I'm grateful for the people I know. 

 I hope you are too.

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