Taking the right path means knowing your true self
How often do you reach a fork in the road? I know I have often enough.
It’s a call to make a difficult, sometimes drastic decision, isn’t it? We know it means our goals are about to change, perhaps our priorities are about to shift. These are things that can impact pretty much every area of your life, and even those around you.
I’m not talking about dilemmas like whether to get the kids a cat or dog, or which vacation destination to visit next. Rather, I’m talking about points in time when you need to make major life-changing decisions. Think along the lines of moving to a new house, changing jobs, or even ending a relationship.
Even just thinking about those examples can bring on a bout of anxiety and confusion. These are life choices that demand careful, calculated consideration.
Which Path Should You Take?
The road that leads to the fork is paved with believing there’s a problem, a viable solution, and believing that now is the time to solve that problem, according to Psychology Today.
Once you pass these hurdles, you will seek a solution. Once you find the solution, you’re faced with a choice.
So, when you come to that fork in the road, you can go straight and keep hitting a wall, or you could choose to veer off to the left or the right. Which one should you take?
I can’t give you a right or wrong answer for this one, but believe it or not, the decision is easy.
Deep down, you probably already know what you want when it comes to a life-changing choice.
Just think about it for a minute. Each time you weigh up the options, which one gives you butterflies or a burning gut reaction? That’s the right choice.
Your gut is in tune with your true self. Your true self doesn’t have emotions when it comes to what other people will think about your choice. What your true self does feel is what you are – it’s stuck in the “what if” moment. And, it’s in that moment, when you sit down and think about that big decision and wait for that gut reaction that you know exactly which path in the road is right for you.
That gut reaction is your true self telling you what it wants. It’s not bothered by other people’s opinions.
In other words, follow your gut when you reach a fork in the road, and you’ll always take the right path.
That’s easier said than done, though, isn’t it?
If you find it difficult to get in touch with your true self and gut feelings, here are two other ways to work through your decision and decide how to proceed on the right path.- Look Beyond the Moment
Tough decisions require deeper thought and consideration. You need to weigh up long-term benefits, pros and cons, and not just immediate gratification.
You might give your kids some allowance money and ask what they’d do with it? Do they save it, or blow it on candy, or something else immediate?
The same goes for adults making decisions. The moment of temptation for an immediate desire will pass, but you need long-term goals to be confident with your choice in the weeks, months, and even years ahead.- Head Versus Heart
Deciding with your heart meets a longing.
In other words, heart choices are all about passions and emotions. They’re made with little consideration because, once again, they’re immediately gratifying.
Decisions made with the head help to check off certain traits and ideals from your pros and cons list and help you make the best decisions, which usually come with both rational and emotional rewards. Those are your true self, gut decisions.
Which Way Will You Go?
How have you previously handled forks in the road? Do you fearlessly take the straight path, or do you veer off to the side into a sticky situation every time?
What’s holding you back from the right path? What’s your gut feeling?
Quiet down those negative voices in your head, take the time to weigh up each path, and get in tune with your true self.
Take that fork in the road and venture your way to a new, positive horizon.
Follow my forks in the road at marksalinas.com today.
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