I was thinking earlier about something I’d recently done – nothing cloak and dagger, mind you – just something I did one way that I would like to have done another way.
I got annoyed with myself and did what any rational, reasonable person does – I started searching high and low for someone else or something else to take the fall. Husband? Daughter #1? Daughter #2? Daughter #3? The dog? The cats? The fact that there are only 24 hours in the day? I nearly had that last one dead to rights, but then I realized that the blame isn’t out there it’s in here. If I didn’t (and I didn’t) get something all the way accomplished that I wanted to, it’s no one’s fault but my own.
Sure, it would be splendiferous of life to cough up more hours for each day, but I’m working with the same number that everyone else is. If there aren’t enough for me, yet there are enough for others – I’m the one who needs a kick, not the clock.
Like everything else in life, it boils down to one basic word: Decisions. We make a million of them each day – and our world stretches or shrinks as a direct result of these decisions. Whenever I’m at my computer staring eye to ink at my to do list, I have two decisions:
- Sit there and crank out the work until the to dos are all to dones, or -
- Grab the keys, purse, whatever daughter(s) are handy and flee the scene, usually in the direction of the mall or coffee shop.
This past week, I saw fit to flee just about every day – and it wasn’t the mall OR coffee shop, it was both! Sure, it was hellacious fun while it lasted, but the result (piled up work, backed up projects….) is just hellacious. The to do list is now 4 times longer than before and it’s maaaaad.
All because of decisions that I made. I’m working twice as hard, twice as long trying to make up for a couple of poor decisions. That stinks.
Anyway, it just made me think (mid work rush) – if we got into the habit of making better decisions and making them more often, we’d be The Stuff rather than watching the stuff hit the fan! After mulling the thought over, I decided I’d write it out – thought it might help someone else when they’re staring down the barrel of a decision.
I’m going to try and remember it this way: Look smack in the middle of the word DECISIONS – There lies the unfortunate answer. More times than not we can each say the same thing when things go wrong - ”The only one to blame Is I.” - and it’s all inside of our decisions.”
I don’t like it any more than you do.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Absolutely! Personal responsibility goes a long way towards bringing about real change. In the end it IS I who must accept what already exists today *and* it IS I who must make the decision to change…
Good stuff! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you! I appreciate your kind words – feedback means a lot to me…..especially positive feedback!
Joi