Freedom starts with making a decision
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The JD Letter November 16, 2024 To all who are trying to pursue many different directions at once (including myself): You’ve probably heard the fable, by ‘Buridan’s ass,’ about a donkey who is standing halfway between a pile of hay and a bucket of water. He just keeps looking left to the hay, and right to the water, trying to decide. Hay or water, hay or water?! He’s unable to decide, so he eventually falls over and dies of both hunger and thirst. We know a donkey can’t think of the future. If he did, he’d realize he could clearly go first to drink the water, then go eat the hay. For humans the problem is we get used to having other people make decisions for ourselves. By the time we actually need to decide what we want, we don't know how to do it. The illusionOur entire lives get "decided" for us in this order:
This is a one size fits all approach in a world filled with unique and complex individuals. Breaking free from the herd mentalityHarsh truth: Following this society norm leaves little room for introspection. Little room for introspection leads to indecisiveness. A state where your mind is in complete chaos, scattered across a thousand directions with no clear focus. It’s the result of following the herd. Have you ever asked yourself: What ideas are truly yours? Do you really believe in the values you live by? Do your daily tasks make you feel alive? Most people get frustrated when the world wants them to pick one thing. "Which option do I choose?" "The man who chases two birds catches none." – Confucius Life isn't always about choosing between water and hay. Sometimes it's about recognizing there's a sequence that makes the most sense. If you're thinking short-term you'll act as such. But when you're able to expand your perspective and think long-term, somehow the decision becomes less difficult to make. How to make better decisionsThe best solution to this problem is to think long-term. To realize that you can do one thing for a few years, that will allow you to do another for a few years, and then another. This requires patience. A skill hard to master for most but that separates those who prevail from those who make poor decisions or worst quit. You can become everything you wish to become. If you can practice being patient, thinking long-term becomes it's byproduct. Important life decisions are about recognizing you can have it all - in the right sequence. Your journey is unique, you don't have to fit into a one size fits all approach. A few questions to ponder:
That's it for today. Chat next week, Jess Inspire, Empower, Transform. P.S I'm helping clients on X:
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