There is a quote by Albert Camus that states, “Life is a sum of all your choices.”
What does that mean? To me, in a nutshell, everything about us is a direct result of choices we make. Our body, our health, our possessions, our beliefs. All stem from thoughts, either conscious or subconscious, and then become actions.
Having said that, we can’t always choose what happens to us, but we can ALWAYS choose how we respond. For example, let’s say a work colleague brings in a plate of treats for the office to share. Now, you didn’t choose for them to do that, but you CAN choose wether you let yourself indulge or not.
You see, everything we do in life is a choice, and I think most of us realise that. But what most people don’t seem to realise is that everything we DON’T do in life is also a choice. Every day we choose to do some things and to not do other things.
Sometimes, choosing not to do something is the wisest choice. However, there is a huge difference between choosing not to do something and choosing to do nothing.
Most people would like to change their life in one way or another. Are there areas of your life that you would like to change?
Anytime you want to, you can change your life, but just wanting to change is not enough. You must make a choice to change. Doing nothing and wishing things would change is the course most people choose. Consequently, nothing ever changes. Disagreements, conflicts and compromises are a part of what it means to be human. Similarly, money, growing old, sickness, deaths, natural disasters and accidents are all events which present problems to virtually all human beings. But you may agree with me some people are able to make it, to avoid immobilisation, dejection and unhappiness despite such occurrences, while other collapse, become inert or have a “Nervous Break Down.”
The thought of having a different life, or a different quality of life, is very appealing to most people. It’s easy to imagine being in better physical condition, having a more rewarding career, and enjoying more meaningful relationships. But pretending doesn’t get the job done. We have all created our present situation by the choices we made in the past. If we chose to do nothing, then our situation reflects that. Recognising that we live in a world of our own creation means that we are responsible. If we don’t like our life the way it is, then we are the ones responsible for making changes.
Does the thought of change make you feel uncomfortable? One of the most common reasons why people are uncomfortable with change is because they haven’t yet accepted full responsibility. For some reason, it seems to be a natural tendency to shrink away from responsibility. This kind of mindset creates helplessness. It means that we are looking for change outside of ourselves. We may look to our mates to make us happy, or we may look to our careers to make us feel fulfilled. In a situation like this, if things don’t turn out the way we want, we tend to blame our mates or our careers. No one else can make you happy, that’s up to you. No career or other person can bring you satisfaction if you are dissatisfied with yourself.
Accepting responsibility is actually a very liberating experience. Once we recognise that we are the ones in control, it makes life much simpler. As I mentioned earlier, we can’t always control what goes on around us, any more than we can control the weather. So what can we control? We can control our response to everything that happens!
Understanding this concept is a vital key to improving the quality of your life. Whatever happens, you are in complete control of your response. You decide what value any event has in your life. Once you make an evaluation, you have the freedom to choose what comes next.
If you’re not happy with your physical condition, make a choice to change, starting today. Too much pondering and over analysing just allows the current situation to continue. Yes, we want to make wise choices, but we don’t want to endlessly delay making a choice as we continue searching for the best solution.
If it seems overwhelming, pick one area of your life and start there. You don’t need to dive into the deep end, but you do need to start taking action!
