Overwhelming Choice |
Thursday Jan 17 2008
What fascinates me most at the moment is my increasing interest in ‘everything’. Where in decades past I was consumed by my job, my family, or my professional pursuits, it seems now that my attention is drawn to all manner of things. As a result, I am considering how I make appropriate choices.
On reflection, I see several factors that contribute to this expanding range of interests:
- As a self-employed and seasoned professional, much of my time is unstructured
- The more I learn, the more I see connections and linkages with other areas
- Being encouraged to live ‘in the moment’ legitimizes attending to whatever is present
- I have earned the right to pursue “what interests me”, not what I should do
- Media and technology constantly remind me of new and important areas to explore
- The clock is ticking.
To complicate things further, along with the barrage of information and options we experience in our daily lives, we have an embodied set of messages about how we are to respond. For example, consider the typical messages parents convey to their children:
- “You can be anything you choose.”
- “The possibilities are endless.”
- “All you have to do is try.”
Let’s zero in on a specific example. This week I was asked to take on two different volunteer roles, one as a mentor of a young professional and the other as Board member of the professional association. Like many decisions, this was not about good and bad. Rather, it required weighing relative positives. Both requests represented valuable contributions that I would be pleased to make. At the same time, to take on both would strain my ability to meet other commitments to my family, my clients and myself.
So, what do we do when faced with increasing awareness of seemingly infinite need and infinite choice? It is tempting to offer a simple answer like:
- “Do what you can.”
- “Start where you are.”
- “Follow your heart”.
It is the interruption of the automatic, unexamined re-action that allows each of us to reflect on who we are, what is important to us, and, in turn, to make the best choice. In my case, I accepted the Board position.
Written by admin at Personal Empowerment
Tagged with: choice commitment options possibility relationship
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