Thursday, January 27, 2011

Decisions

In every day life, the average person is expected to make decisions rationally and with a certain amount of logic and thought. There are various means and methods used to make a decision, most of which are unconscious. Choices range from what to have for breakfast, to what your priorities for the day are to what clothes you wish to adorn yourself with.

In the realm of decision making, most people expect logic. By logic, I suggest most would assume the following. If you want to buy something, you ensure you have the means to pay for it. If you want to eat something, you go to a cupboard or a fridge. If you want to go out, you call a friend. If you want a friend, it helps to take the initiative and put the work into calling them. If you want a house or a vehicle, you enlist professional help. That would be logical.

It interests me that you hear that people have nothing to wear when their closet is full. There is nothing to eat, yet the cupboard is full. There is nothing to buy, but the shops are waiting anxiously and with intent. Having once been someone who didn't even have two pennies to rub together and struggled to cope with the basics, this fascinates me. I look at the news with all the people who have nothing and wonder about a society that allows us the luxury of complaining about nothingness. We are living in a society where old fashioned manners and the philosophy of making do have all but vanished. There seems to be the need for the instant fix or the need to be an individual or unique. These are decisions (because it was decided that there was nothing) that I don't understand much.

And for the record, I have said that I have nothing to wear but I qualify that by saying there is nothing that I want to wear. Sigh - maybe I am as bad. I am deciding not to think about that!


Personally, I think I am in favor of exploring options. I think that you can make effective decisions on your own. I really do. I also think that sooner or later decisions have to come down to personal choice and preference. No one can make a decision for you without somehow negating the responsibility that you have to invest in the decision. Are opinions valid. Absolutely. Is information gathering helpful? Of course. Should you have a deadline for a decision? Absolutely.

Can you imagine taking a week to choose an outfit for work? A week to decide what to eat for one meal? A month to find shelter when you are homeless? Of course not, most people enlist help and use their resources to be on time and to get on with their life as best possible. My children will ask me to help them choose an outfit.  So what is it about major decisions that leaves people muddled and confused? Why can't you trust your first instinct and just go with it? Why do people second guess themselves all the time? I can't answer all these questions, but I am definitely going to think about it on my own.

In this house, the prospect of a new vehicle looms heavy on the horizon. The old one could be fixed, but money has been spent to no avail as no one can decide what is wrong with it. There seem to be two options, two brands, two colors, similar price. Is it affordable? Sort of? The offer of a loaner vehicle is there. Quite frankly, that is the option that is making the most sense. No one seems to have enough information on the two new options, and at the same time there is too much. The list of what is wanted was made and created. The new vehicles fit that bill too. There is the want of a new shiny toy versus a practical solution at the finger tips. What to do? I think I am going to toss a coin. Red is heads, tails is blue. This is it for me. . .how about you?

Ok, I am finished making fun of my own situation. I am going to look at the information available and make an educated guess. Night!

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