Wednesday, August 24, 2005

Anxiety Proofing Your Decisions

There are two extremes of how people make decisions, both are equally dangerous.
There is one group who don't think about the decision at all and just impulsively 'jump in.' Then there is a larger group who think about the decision too much and don't ever dive in at all. They just keep waiting and waiting for the time to be right, for conditions to change, for more information or any other excuse that they can think of to delay the decision making process even further.

Both have anxiety that they created. Here's why. One group are delaying the anxiety about a decision by being impulsive on the front end, to likely have way more pressure after they jump in because they weren't prepared for what was over the edge. I call this approach, 'short term gain/long term pain' because it can take a long time to undo the damage caused by ignoring the risks of a major decision. The other approach creates significant anxiety on the front end, so much so that a decision is often never made, or is made too late. They work themselves up into an anxious wreck, but never make a move forward to take action. Both approaches are ineffective and anxiety prone because they miss the balanced approach of getting facts together, seeking advice, considering the timing and then diving in with wisdom. This direct approach gets results without all the anxiety.



Picture it this way-
you are watching someone climb up the ladder to the high dive at your local YMCA. They race to the end of the diving platform and give a yell as they do a cannonball off the edge-neglecting to see the pool guys cleaning and scrubbing below them until they crash. Their impulsive need to jump without considering the costs of that decision could cost them everything. The next day the pool is up to normal levels and you watch another would be diver make the climb up and cautiously peer over the edge, then climb back down to ask the lifeguards for water temperature and wave conditions, then ask others if they think that the platform is too high, or if they think that it's safe to even jump at all. While they are anxiously waiting for the water levels to rise to a more favorable condition the pool closes and it's time to go home. Neither diver accomplished anything positive because they lacked the insight to make a bold decision at the right time.

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Dwight is a Nationally Certified Counselor and Life Coach specializing in life transitions to guide you from stress to success. Dwight is having an impact nationally on individuals, families and business groups. His purpose is to come alongside and help you achieve maximum results in your personal and professional life.