The Power of Choice – How To Be Successful In What Matters Most

January 22, 2013 in Success with 11 Comments

The Power of Choice - How To Be Successful In What Matters MostHow to be successful in what matters most? 

This is a question I ask myself often.

The reason is because I don’t want to get to the end of my life only to look back and realize I wasted it pursuing success in areas that don’t matter. I want to live it forward in the areas that truly matter most!

That’s why these questions in a recent issue of Success Magazine caught my attention:

  • What single force can shape our success or our failure?
  • What one power do we have that, if used correctly, can practically guarantee our success?

The answer? It’s the power of choice!

Think about it. You and I are where we are today because of the choices we have made. Unwise choices repeated over and over lead to failure. Wise choices repeated regularly lead to success. It’s pretty much that simple.

But what do we do with the unwise decisions we’ve made in the past? And more importantly, what do we do with the unwise decisions we might make in the future? Do unwise decisions mean our road to success is destined to hit a dead end?

This is what I love about the power of choice and the role it plays in how to be successful in what matters most.

In most cases, success is the result of wisdom and good judgement. Yet wisdom and good judgment come from experience, and experience is often the result of mistakes we have made in the past because of poor judgment. As Will Rogers said, “Good judgement comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment.”

What all of this means to you and me is that the experience gained from all our bad judgment and mistakes is unbelievable valuable. In fact, our greatest teacher is failure!

So, if you have made a mistake recently and you’re wondering how to be successful in the midst of it all, don’t waste time beating yourself up. Instead, put on your learning cap and do what successful people do. Use the power of choice! Ask yourself:

  • What actually happened?
  • What could I have done differently?
  • Next time I face a similar situation how will I positively use the power of choice?

Bottom line, your life is the outcome of the choices you make. If you don’t like the outcomes you are currently experiencing, put the power of choice to work for you. Different choices will produce different results. That’s how to be successful in what matters most!

Question: How have you positively used the power of choice? How did it help you experience success in something that really matters?

 

  • MrTravisScott

    Choices are a favorite topic of mine. Two years ago I decided to make a choice that postively changed all the lives in my family!

    See I realized I was not living a life true to me! During college I majored in Finance and then got a job in banking/investments b/c that is what I thought I should do. I became obsessed with climbing the corporate ladder and 11-12 hour days were normal. After a family tragedy…I reflected on my life and decided to change it.

    So two years ago, I totally switched careers in one of the worst economic periods in our country’s history! I now work way less, spend more time with my family, love my job, run 1/2 marathons, and make more money than I did before.

    I believe all this happened b/c I decided to make a choice to take control of my life and be true to myself. It all started with a choice!

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      INSPIRING Travis!!!!!

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1026054025 Wendy Sutter-Staas

    How have I used the power of choice? Wow.. . . I choose in 2013 to be successful. To get the word “if” out of my vocabulary and only say “when” — because “if” is as bad as “I can’t” — I can only control what I can do — what I can’t do I hire out. . . that is another choice I am making this year. No more screwing around wasting time with things I don’t know how to do and then accepting mediocrity — NO MORE MEDIOCRITY for me!!!

    How has the power of choice helped me experience success where it really matters?? Well, 4 years ago I decided to no longer work in a j-o-b and be sucked down by the corporate world. . . it may be taking a while for the ‘success’ to really happen financially, but my relationships and everything else is life is so much better. . . that is what I believe is true success — I finally feel like I am right where the Lord wants me to be!!

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      True success is about so much more than $$$. Yet often, when we start to experience true success in the most important roles of our lives, the $$$ follows. Often, it just sort of works that way.

  • Tom Morrison

    Wow! What a great post Kent, there is a lot of meat here. “Your life is the outcome of the choices you make”. Buying in to that concept has been the biggest positive factor in recent years for me. I have decided to be intentional about growth in a number of areas and although results have not happened overnight I am starting to feel a lot of momentum. Coupled with choice is also the quote that “the difference between successful and unsuccessful people is how they think”. I was out with a mentor this week and asked him how he mentally processed a certain situation I struggle with. As I listened to him I realized his thought process was totally different from mine in the same situation. What an eye opener for me. I am going to start digging deeper with successful people on not only what are you doing but more importantly what is your thought process.

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Wow Tom! I just tweeted about your response. Good stuff!!

      I LOVE the fact that you are learning from your mentor. I do the same thing and it has made a huge difference in my life over the past 5-10 years.

      BTW, you might like this post as well. Really helps with how progress is made overtime step-by-step: http://www.liveitforward.com/big-is-little-and-little-is-big/

      • Tom Morrison

        Thanks for the link to another fantastic post!

        • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

          My pleasure!

  • http://www.mondayisgood.com/ Tom Dixon

    Going through this process at work now with a bad situation that happened last year – doubling down the efforts to apply what I learned to prevent a repeat!

    • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

      Tom…now you have me curious. I’m sure you need to keep your cards close to your chest right now, but keep us updated. And FYI…just said a prayer for you, buddy.

  • http://www.liveitforward.com/ Kent Julian

    Wow…lots of comments and reposting already. Thanks for reading and commenting!