Have you ever been faced with a choice and had absolutely no idea what to do?
Then you’re in the right place.
In this post, I’m going to give you a step-by-step formula to consistently make better decisions in life.
Let’s start with defining “Better Decisions”
What are good decisions, better decisions and best decisions?
Oftentimes in life, you’ll find yourself at a crossroads. You’ll have a few options and you’ll have to make a decision as to which path to take. Most of the time, you won’t be able to take more than one path.
You do your best to prepare for moments like this, moments that you know will shape the rest of your life or at least the foreseeable future. You do your research, weigh the pros and cons, talk to friends and colleagues – all to make sure that you make the best decision possible.
Let me start by saying that there are no objective “best decisions.” This is subjective to everyone. That’s why different sources will give you different answers – depending on who you ask, you can get recommendations for any of the choices laid out to you.
“Good decisions” are ones that are practical and intellectually sound. There are no gaping holes in logic and all the details are clear – pros and cons.
“Better decisions” are ones that resonates with you. They’re decisions that you can get behind with every fibre of your being. Better decisions are ones that you will not regret years down the road. All the details may not be initially clear but it won’t matter because the decision speaks to your soul and calls you.
How do you identify which of the options laid out to you are the better decisions to make?
What if none of the options speak to your soul?
Depending on how in touch you are with yourself, the better decisions may or may not always be clear. And this is when you need to go inwards and really get in touch with yourself and identify what you want from life.
There is a misconception that you must follow the path laid out for you, in actuality, this is a recipe for misery. Your life should be about connecting with yourself living your truth. There is no greater cause than this. When you’re aligned with yourself, everything else will fall into place and life will begin to flow again.
The outside world can only give you so much and you will intuitively know when it’s not resonating with you. A decision only becomes difficult when you’re not in touch with yourself and you don’t have a clear purpose in sight.
Reading articles, doing research and listening to other people’s opinions can only take you so far in the decision-making process.
At the end of the day, you are the one who has to live with your choices, so it only makes sense that you should support them 100%. It doesn’t matter what other people think, their opinions are just opinions and opinions change more often than you change your clothes every day.
The Fail-Proof Process to make Better Decisions
Making better decisions begins with connecting with yourself and knowing what you want from life. Going inward can seem daunting if you’ve never done it before, but once you’ve aligned with yourself, all other obstacles will fall away.
Step 1) Create your safe space
The first thing that I would recommend to approach going inward to deepen your connection with yourself, is finding (or creating) a safe space.
This space for you to be you. Your space should make you feel comfortable and at home.
Keep your space clean and free of stressful triggers. For example, if your phone is constantly going off with work emails or social media notifications and other things that take your energy outwards, keep it out of your safe space.
Along with your safe space, allot a safe time. This is time for you to disconnect from all engagements and all responsibilities and just be.
It might be scary at first. Let’s be honest, spending time with yourself is not something that popular culture pushes very much. But you’ll find that the more you stick with it, the more and more comfortable you will become with yourself and the more you will crave this time to refresh yourself.
Step 2) Express yourself
You spend so much time consuming the things in the world. Use this small part of your day to express yourself.
Instead of taking energy in, put energy out: express yourself in any form that you’re comfortable with, whether that’s art, music, dance, etc., choose something that resonates with you.
If you’re not sure what medium would be the better decision for you, I recommend starting with journaling. Write down your thoughts. Acknowledge that they exist and let them flow.
In the beginning, journaling may just seem like a log of your day. You might not know what to write, but as you become more and more comfortable with yourself, you’ll find that the words just flow. You might sit down without having anything in particular to write, and you’ll find your pen flying across your page (or your cursor across your screen), filling it with thoughts and emotions that you didn’t even know existed.
Expressing your truth in this way allows you to really become vulnerable with yourself. This raw acknowledgement of where you are in life is what will allow you to make better decisions; not only will it ultimately lead you closer to your authentic self, it will naturally lead you to a meditation practice.
Step 3) Meditate
Meditation is observing the mind and being aware of all the activities of the mind — from the logical to the illogical.
As you journal, the awareness of your thoughts will naturally grow. Soon you’ll be comfortable putting down your pen, closing your eyes and just being with your thoughts. Whether they’re good or bad thoughts, like words on paper you’ll be able to just let them flow.
Carving time out of your day to meditate will allow you to hear your intuition over the stream of endless thoughts. It is your intuition that will ultimately tell you which decision is the better one – your intuition is your compass in life. It’s what guides you and keeps you moving in the right direction.
Being disconnected from your intuition is what leaves you feeling directionless and stuck in life. It goes without saying that by reconnecting with yourself, making better decisions will become effortless. At every step of the path, you will intuitively know which way to turn.
Let your Intuition Guide you
Making better decisions without having a compass is impossible. How would you know which way is the right way?
It’s easy to get caught up in the outer world and lose sight of what you really want from life. Meditation and spending time with yourself is what will keep you grounded and moving toward your unique purpose in life.
I’ve personally redesigned my bedroom to double as my safe space and I constantly update it so that it grows with me. I keep my space clean and remove things that clutter my space such as unused clothing, seasonal items and old accessories. I also have very specific rules for my space. For example, in my space everything has a home, I don’t eat in my space, I don’t work in my space. I keep screen time at a minimum in my space and I spend intentional time in my space daily.
All of this helps me subconsciously associate my space with relaxation, self care and spending quality time with myself. This in turn helps me go deeper in meditation and always know which decisions are the better decisions for me.