I’ve never been very good at making decisions.  Being both a thinker and a feeler in equal measure, I find it very difficult to know whether to follow my head or my heart.

As a consequence I usually end up not making a choice at all and then being forced to go along with whatever someone else (or the circumstances of a situation) decide for me.  As you can imagine, while this takes the responsibility of possibly making the ‘wrong’ decision out of my hands, I also can’t really complain if it turns out not to be the choice I wanted.  In the vast majority of situations I finish up wishing I’d made the decision myself.

Over the last few months I’ve had to make some pretty big decisions in my personal and professional life.  It’s not been easy, but I’ve got there (eventually).  I knew I would – it’s just taken me a little longer than strictly necessary.

With reflection I can honestly say that it feels so much better to have actually made a choice about what I want to do instead of waiting for the possibility that something better might come along, or hoping that an answer might suddenly appear in front of me.  Being responsible for my own choices and trusting that whatever choice I make will turn out to be the right one, (even if it doesn’t lead me where I thought it would straight away), is something that I’m really trying to incorporate into the way I live my life.

A lot of my clients face the same problem as me.  They to and fro between two (or more) different options and end up stuck.  Not being able to make a definite decision about something can often leave you feeling like you’re in limbo.  Waiting.  Uncertain. Out of control.

The best way to help you feel like you’re back in control again is to take action.

Sometimes the only action you need to take initially is to make a decision.

Sometimes making a decision is the best form of action you can take.

This little exercise is something I’ve started using with clients who have a decision they want/need to make but can’t quite bring themselves to do it.  It’s worked so well that I’m sure I’ll be using it with myself too.

It’s pretty simple really.

Flip a coin.

Yep, you heard me right.  Flip a coin.

Not because heads or tails will give you the right choice.

But because in the few milliseconds that the coin is spinning around in the air, you’ll know precisely which one you’re hoping it will land on.

That one is your answer.

 

Give it a try.

I’d love to know what decisions and choices you made as a result of using this exercise, so please feel free to leave a comment below.