It took three months between the time my instincts said, “This ain’t right” to the moment I typed the words “effective immediately.” Ah, decisions, decisions.  We all must make them on a daily basis, from minor, nearly inconsequential choices to life-changing selections of one path over another.

The three months provided me with some valuable lessons about making big decisions.

Question

Ask yourself questions as to why there’s a nagging feeling that something must change. Don’t react immediately though.

Observe

Be observant of the various conditions over time. Don’t over-extrapolate a specific action or comment into being a persistent condition. Watch, listen, assemble the landscape of the situation so you can see it more clearly.

Remove

Take emotion and personal offense out of the decision-making process. It can take time to get there, and that’s okay. The second agreement in the book The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz is “Don’t take anything personally.”  So true. Take whatever amount of time is necessary to get to that place.

Decide

When the answer is clear, decide.  There are many times when the answer won’t be 100%, absolutely, positively, unequivocally, undeniably, without question…perfect.  So be it. Don’t let that reality keep you from making the decision though.

And all the time…pray. I believe that prayer should be part of daily life anyway, but it is also the mortar that holds together the four steps described above, and the pathway to move from one step to the other.

Best of luck with the decisions you need to make today, tomorrow and for the rest of your life. There is no avoiding them.