Tough (Question) Tuesday: What’s the toughest decision you need to make?
I admit, I was thisclose to taking a blog break today, since I’m up to my eyeballs in scholarship applications (why do you all have to be so freakin’ awesome?!) & need to pick a winner by tomorrow as promised (gulp). But as I was writing the I’m-on-vacation-please-leave-your-message-at-the-beep post, I thought of such a good tough question, I couldn’t resist.
So, empty your mind, put on your thinking cap & ask:
What’s the toughest decision you need to make?
For me, it’s two words: Scholarship Winner! Let me know that I’m not the only one making a tough decision today / in the near future by sharing your tough decision (whether or not you know the answer) in the comment section. See ya tomorrow (I can’t promise when!) with the winner. Eek!
*********************************************************************************************************
1 person. $710 worth of resume sprucing. Get The Goods with Alexandra Franzen’s Scholarship.
Get Danielle LaPorte’s Nuggets of Genius in your own home, on your own time. Announcing the Digital Firestarter Sessions from my “cult leader.”
Tags: Tough (Question) Tuesday
May 11th, 2010 at 2:34 am
Hmm … tough decisions, eh?
I always struggle with prioritizing travel plans and vacation options, because I wanna do it ALLLLL. Ha! With imminent trips to NYC and LA, I know that I'm basically "booked" for the summer. But when an amazing opportunity crops up (Coffee tour of Europe! Alaskan cruise! Conference in Vegas! ) it's tough to assess it logically and say, "not this time."
May 11th, 2010 at 3:35 am
Today, my toughest decision will be making the choice to get out of the house. I won't bore you with the logistics of all of this and why it's such a hassle, but I do know that I'm in need of some social interaction and it would be best for me to be out of the house so that those depression spiders don't start spinning their webs.
May 11th, 2010 at 3:54 am
The toughest decision I need to make is what the next step is for my business. The tough part is letting go and trusting that an answer is there. I'm this close to deciding, but not entirely sure. And because I don't like limbo, I keep wanting to make a quick-willy-nilly-let's-get-this-show-on-the-road decision. While that is a good idea sometimes, it's not the right approach this time and I know it.
Good luck with your decision! I'm sure your choice will be a great one.
May 11th, 2010 at 4:29 am
Today, my toughest decision will be to be patient!
I recently got accepted into grad school (woohoo me!) but am waiting on some other things to come thru (ie finances for said woohoo school). So I'm trying to stay calm and centered, and praying the right door opens at the right time!
(And, giving myself the courage to kick the door down if it doesn't want to open!)
May 11th, 2010 at 5:01 am
I've been thinking a lot lately about all of the energy suckers in my life: people, things, habits. I think my tough decision that I need to make is to actually take the step to stand up for myself and my business (and my happy life!) and cut these things out completely!
May 11th, 2010 at 6:07 am
My tough decision is whether to continue the 9-5 grind, or find a way to quit the job so I can go to school full-time.
On one hand is a stable income that just covers monthly needs. On the other hand is something that would help me reach my true career goal faster. Somewhere in the middle is a vast ocean of information; in that ocean – floating on a tiny raft – is the answer of how to make it all work. I could rent a mental helicopter and find that poor little lost answer, but that would mean asking for time off work to have the time to do it, and that time off would likely be unpaid (or would come with other mental burdens that could derail the search).
So, that's my tough decision. The big one, anyway.
May 11th, 2010 at 12:28 pm
Tough decision for the day…
Whether or not to let an old friend go. The relationship just doesn't benefit either one of us anymore…
Sigh.
May 11th, 2010 at 2:09 pm
My tough decision for the day is one I don't have an answer for yet, it's actually the decision I wrestle with every day lately. It's regarding my path, my business, and which direction to go…I am sitting with it for now, noticing, being present, and trying to focus on tending my garden. Letting go of the outcome and working on the smaller steps for now. Otherwise it's too easy to get overwhelmed.
I feel your pain today Michelle, it sounds like you are going to have a tough time deciding who to choose. I have such big faith that you will make the perfect decision. Listen to that inner guide, that's all we can do, right? Well….that and you can have a glass of wine. See which one of us pairs well with your wine tonight! That's it…there's your answer. I will have a glass tonight in solidarity. Wishing you a stress free evening, a good night's sleep, and a faboosh day tomorrow.
May 11th, 2010 at 2:13 pm
Oh boy! Mr Misc & I are faced with a whopper of a big job decision right now (Sing along with me, "Should I stay or should I go now?"). On one hand, the potential of a great opportunity…on the other, massive upheaval. We're having lots of serious chats and also dreaming together. It's a fun, anxious time.
May 11th, 2010 at 2:13 pm
wow, i share so many of EVERYONE's touch decisions…old friends, career moves (i just made a major leap, and now…i need to go back to school!), engagement, financial…and it feels REALLy good to read through theirs and know we're all in this together.
here for you as you make your decision, here for the inspiration to make my own! thanks for showing up in your full vulnerability today—you've got me thinking! xoxox @esteffi
May 11th, 2010 at 2:22 pm
my inner child would say! create! make a mess! mistake…what's that?! play! read! have fun with your art! try new things! hooray!
instead, the old-fart critic in me says, 'oh, baaah-humbug!' and threatens to make my indie artist life one of shame and drudgery and fear. i think i will name my inner-critic. his name is norbert. (i apologize to any norbert's out there). so there you go!
May 11th, 2010 at 2:41 pm
The question I am asking myself today is …. how to be successful if I have never been that before. I mean if I could just SEE what it looks like, that would help. And why didn't I ever set higher goals than I have? Why? What was in operation or not in operation with that little tiny voice on the inside of me. NO! You can't! That isn't being humble. Nice girls are humble. So one of the answers to the question that I am asking myself today is … how to be around successful people, just so that I could see … what that looks like.
May 11th, 2010 at 2:42 pm
How to gracefully depart a FT gig… and I have to do it tomorrow. So that I can take a leap of faith. So that I can widen my root base. So that I can grow in the nourishing, sustaining ways that I need to.
Best of luck on navigating your tough decision! Whichever person you select will be a lucky duck, and also the perfectly right person for you.
May 11th, 2010 at 3:31 pm
You are not alone!
Today's toughest decision was to go ahead with my workshop classes. I have a headache and the phone lines didn't like me – but I did it anyway and I think the participants got something out of each class.
Jenn B
May 11th, 2010 at 4:19 pm
tough decision for the day…..
to keep moving 1 foot in front of the other in terms of pursuing my dream of getting my masters to pursue a career as a mental health counselor DESPITE my fear. i have my kickass hot pink barbie floaties on & inflated (i literally cannot swim); i have my box of twistable crayons in my pocket – to make even the crappiest days/ situation look prettier; have my ipod loaded w/ my inspiring/ motivating music ready to go & i have my big girl pants on. so even w/ all my 'gear' in place i sit/ stand/ live frozen/ immobilized completely fearing the unknown……..
good times………..NOT
May 11th, 2010 at 8:51 pm
my tough decision today is also just one to "be patient".. trusting myself and the future enough that things will fit into place soon enough. no need to spiral out of control because today is not a Big Change day.
xoxo
May 12th, 2010 at 1:23 am
My toughest decision for the day is whether to give honest feedback performance on someone here at work, or to focus on her positive traits only (which is more on her personality vs. skill set for the job) …… a few years ago this would have been a no-brainer for me … I was totally impatient with people who were not doing the job the way I felt they should (read: the way I do mine) but the past year I've made a real effort to not judge and stop focusing on the negative side of people and try accept all good things. But am I ultimately being fair to my company and even to this individual. I struggle with how to do this since it is a part of my job responsibility to provide honest feedback!!! I spent all night tossing and turning this around in my head and sadly I still do not have a clear answer on how I'll proceed. Bottom line – an already difficult situation compounded by sleepiness and a foggy thought process this morning.
P.S. I love these questions and glean so much information from the responses.
May 12th, 2010 at 4:15 am
My toughest decision today is going to think about if I really need to make a decision today.
I've got this work thing going on…it's work that I'm good at, that people depend on me for…but its work that I don't enjoy. So it's really a mater of if MY enjoyment is more or less important to me then letting people down.
Do I need to decide what to do about this today? Can I keep on keeping on? For how long?
May 12th, 2010 at 7:44 am
Hm. Such a great question and I loved getting to read thru other's responses. I'm currently making a cd a my decisions seem endless… And each time a listen, I'm faced with more choices and I am currently avoiding it all and reading blogs instead!!
May 12th, 2010 at 8:10 am
My tough decision of the week is which work-related fire to put out first. We have a ton of projects going on, two events that I'm leading 3 days apart from each other, 5 mailings in the next 7 weeks (three of which I'm responsible for), plus it is the end of our fiscal year which means year ends financials and statistics AND presenting next years plan (yet to be determined) in less than two weeks to our board of directors. Now that I'm only here 32 hours, that seems like a bit much
And all I really want to do is be home dreaming and scheming and planning MY business. So I have to decide to put that aside and prioritize what needs to be done while I'm at the money-giver place. Unfortunately :/
May 12th, 2010 at 8:23 am
Holy crapballs! You kids came out in spades, & I'm oh so grateful for that. And yes, I made my (super duper, really truly, absofreakinlutely) decision regarding the winner of the scholarship. The post will be up momentarily – I'm just waiting for the video to upload!
@Alexandra – That's such a tough part of growing up – saying "No" even when you want to! Kudos for setting the priorities now so that you don't burn-out later.
@Alisha – You're preaching to the choir! I came home Sun night & didn't leave the house again 'til Tue night – & that was because I had to go to rehearsal. But meanwhile, I know that if I don't at least take a walk every 48 hours I get draggy, grumpy, & a bit stircrazy. It's amazing how much we convince ourselves that we know better than what our body's trying to tell us!
@Sarah – Ugh, trust is the hardest thing ever. Ever! But it seems like you know that this is a decision that needs time & marination, so amen to listening! I know it won't steer you wrong.
@Jenny – Nobody would describe me as "patient" either. I want it all, & I want it now! But HOORAY for you in getting in – that's conquering the first step completely! It's tough, too, to be patient when things are out of your hands. Hang in there – I know the next steps will go your way, too!
@Tiffany – Ohmygosh, that's tough too! Jeez Louise Louise, you kids are killing me. I so know those real-life Vampires (as opposed to the one that lives in your head), & I find they're best slain (with the least amount of guilt or anger or confrontation) by really going through how you'd be comfortable slaying it. What needs to be said or done or shared in order to walk away & say, "I did that the best I could." Ugh, toughness! But remember, you can only control what you can control. Wouldn't it be fun if you controlled others, though? Evil!
@Sharon – So, so tough! Man, you guys aren't making it easy. I guess that's the point of tough (question) Tuesday, though
You might wanna ask yourself what you need to make up your safety net. When you have that foundation down, it's usually a bit easier to make a decision/figure out a compromise/formulate a plan.
@Angela – Oh man, I've had to do that more than once. It goes back to what I said to Tiffany – you can only control what you can control, so if you figure out what you want to say/do & how you want to say it/do it with the least amount of anger/guilt, that's usually the compass in how you can move forward knowing you handled it the best you can.
@Olive&Hope – I have such a great visual of you (even though I don't know what you look like) of you in a garden, eyes closed, sitting Indian-style, surrounded by lush flowers, holding on to a glass of wine, & just listening to the sounds. We as people (especially in 2010!) are never quiet enough. Keep listening to what's being brought up in the quiet & you'll absolutely find your way. And thanks for the solidarity! I was impressed that I only had 1 glass of wine last night
@Angelique – Ah, serious dreams. Those are good ones because you can tell they're close to coming true. Let me know if you wanna talk, chica bonita!
@Stephanie – Thank you, thank you! And I agree – these answers are so timely & inspirational! I have such a nice home here on the Interwebs, thanks to all you guys!
@Jess – Oh no – tomorrow's today! Hope everything went as well as it could & you feel a bit lighter today.
@Jenn – Ah, the joys of being a coach. Isn't it interesting, though, that you can get on the line feeling sick/grumpy/angry/mad & feel it dissipate within minutes? At least that's what happens for me. It's sometimes a good thing to let yourself push through just to see what happens.
@Shellie – You got the goods, & that's half the battle! What would happen if you just decided to do one. little. thing. That's it. What would you do? How would you feel during? After? Feel free to bribe yourself with something awesome when you're done. And seriously – you don't wanna keep those hot pink floaties to yourself! That's amazing.
@Melissa – Sometimes those Big Change days are the nicest, along the lines of "no news is good news" & having an empty mailbox meaning no bills. Treasure it, or make it special by adding something a lil' special to your day (I treated myself to hot chocolate yesterday, & it so made me smile).
@Michele – So tough, but it seems like your heart's in the right place! Is there a middle ground here for you to give this feedback, but in a more positive/constructive way? I find that phrasing things positively & having the other person engage in the conversation by asking them questions puts you on the same team. I know you'll do great – I'm rooting for ya!
@Cass – Ooh, I see that rope getting smaller and smaller, & you're wondering if you're at the end. Bottom line is that you know it's gonna snap at some point, so even if you don't know when, can you do 1 thing today to keep you from moving forward to your breaking point?
@Kerri – Ah, procrastination! Such a friend. There was a study I heard recently that a person faced with having to buy 1 of 40 different types of jelly took way longer to pick a flavor than someone faced with having to buy 5 different types of jelly. Any way for you to narrow down your choices? I know it's tough, but you can put 'em in a list & ask yourself, "Would I rather do 1 or 2?" If 1 wins, cross off 2 & then ask, "Would I rather do 1 or 3?" & so on. Hope it helps!
December 8th, 2010 at 7:49 pm
OOOhhh that would be to believe in myself with out a doubt so that I can win my husband over on my plans. I'm having a hard enough time getting there myself. He's so type A personality I'd need a slide show and pie chart to get him fully on board!