You don’t need to be sad, you can choose happiness.  You don’t need to be afraid, you can choose confidence.  You don’t need to be discouraged, you can choose hope.  You don’t need to be harried, you can choose calmness.  You don’t have to fail, you can choose success.  You don’t have to be lonely, you can choose love.  You don’t have to be defeated, you can choose victory. 

Every aspect of your life is influenced by the choices you make.  Your happiness, health, relationships, career, attitude, education, lifestyle, and character, are just some of the many aspects impacted.

The path your life takes is based on the choices you make.  Even though you encounter unexpected and unpredictable events, you chose your response.  It’s easy to identify wrong decisions in hindsight.  The challenge is making the right decisions moving forward.

You are ultimately responsible for the choices you make.  Don’t blame anyone else.  If you abdicate responsibility, you effectively give up control over your destiny. 

Always endeavor to do the right thing.  Don’t make excuses.  Listen to your intuition.  Avoid any choices that harm others or are self-destructive. 

Although you want all of your decisions to be perfect, it’s impossible to go through life without making some bad ones.  This process is part of your education.  You will actually learn more from bad decisions than from the good ones.  If you never make a mistake, you are doing something wrong.

Regardless of your past choices, you are always free to make new ones.  This is how you make corrections.  You have the right and the ability to choose your thoughts.  In order to change your direction you must change your thinking.

Fear of the wrong choice can inhibit you from making any choice at all.  Yet, not making a decision is a choice.  The path of success and accomplishment requires making choices, not avoiding them.

There are no guarantees.  Avoiding all bad choices is not possible.  However, there are steps you can take to make the best possible choices.  Remember, bad choices can be corrected or mitigated by following up with better ones.

Before making a choice, get as much information as possible about your situation and all available options.   Determine the pros and cons of each.  Choose the most advantageous option and then take action.  All you can do is make the best choice possible with the information you have at hand.

Avoid the trap of paralysis by analysis.  You don’t want to spend so much time determining the best choice that you either avoid making a decision or decide too late.  Also, consider what’s the worst that can happen?  For most situations, a worst case scenario really isn’t as bad as you imagine.

Successful people tend to decide on choices quickly and change their minds slowly.  Others do the reverse.  They take a long time selecting their choices and make changes impulsively. 

Spend some time assessing your current situation.  What choices have you made to get where you are?  What choices are you happy with?  What decisions would you change if you could?  There is a lot to be learned from the path you have already taken.

Take this knowledge and utilize it when making choices today and in the future.  The choices you make steer your life.  To change course, make different choices.  As a guide, look to those people who are where you want to be.  Study their choices, both good and bad.  Someone else’s experience can save you a lot of time and effort.

NOW AVAILABLE:  "Dare to Live Without Limits," the book.  Visit www.BryanGolden.com or your bookstore. Bryan is a management consultant, motivational speaker, author, and adjunct professor. E-mail Bryan at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or write him c/o this paper.  2011 Bryan Golden

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