"Decisiveness is a characteristic of high-performing men and women. Almost any decision is better than no decision at all." --Brian Tracy, Author, and Speaker

Are you sometimes afraid to make decisions – worried about making the wrong decision? Worried about making a mistake?

Not deciding IS a decision.

Not deciding is likely the biggest mistake of all, as it keeps you stuck. Once you decide something, then at least you move forward.

My client Larry couldn’t decide whether or not to marry Sophia. They had been living together for three years, and Sophia was ready to get married. Larry had lost his previous girlfriend, whom he was still grieving over, due to the same situation – not making a decision.

Larry was so afraid of making the wrong decision that he was stuck. In not deciding, he was passively deciding not to get married. When Sophia moved on due to his indecision, Larry was devastated – just as he had been in his previous relationship. This is when he called me, but it was too late with Sophia – she had moved on.

Larry’s indecisiveness stemmed from his false beliefs about mistakes and failure. He didn’t see mistakes or failures as learning opportunities, but as indications of his inadequacy. As long as Larry attached his worth and adequacy to success, he would be unable to make a big decision, such as whether or not to get married.

Have you made it okay to fail, to make mistakes, and to fall on your face? If not, why not?

I’ve learned to make decisions very rapidly, because I know that whatever the outcome, I will have learned from the experience. I’ve certainly had my share of big mistakes. While I don’t like mistakes and failures, they don’t devastate me because I don’t attach my worth to them. I don’t tell myself that I am a failure because I fail at something. I don’t tell myself that I’m a bad person because I’ve made a big mistake. As I look back over the big mistakes I’ve made and failures I’ve experienced, I can see that each time my soul learned important lessons from the experience.

In my belief system, learning and evolving my soul in my ability to love myself and others is why I’m on the planet, and my mistakes and failures have supported this learning just as much as my successes have, and maybe even more. Successes are wonderful, but it’s through my mistakes and failures that I’ve had to come to grips with the deeper fears and false beliefs of my wounded self. In my experience, anything that helps me to become conscious of the false beliefs and unloving behavior of my wounded self is worth it.

How to Make Decisions Quickly

I’ve learned to make decisions rapidly by checking in with my feelings and my higher guidance and trusting them. If I have to decide about something I don’t know anything about, I do my research, and then I trust my feelings and higher guidance. I go with what feels right for me. If it doesn’t turn out the way I hoped, then I trust that the reason I was guided to this decision is because there are important lessons for me to learn. In my view, whatever I decide will be a learning experience for me, so I don’t stress over my decisions.

Are there decisions in your current life that you are putting off making? I encourage you to let go of worrying about mistakes and failure and make a decision – and then learn from the result!

Learn to connect with your spiritual guidance with Unlocking Your Inner Wisdom, A 30-Day at-home Experience with Dr. Margaret Paul.