Making Your Mind Up?

Ah, decisions decisions. Something that I am not very good at making, according to Him Indoors. I disagree. Okay, so if he asks me if I want potatoes or rice with my chicken, I will probably tell him to choose. Not because I can’t decide, but because I really don’t mind. Same with a lot of things. Bounty or Crunchie? Hell, they are both chocolate. Thai or Indian? Either or will do me nicely, thank you.
In London, I am often faced with decision overload. Take your average weekend. So, what shall I do, I wonder? Shopping? Museum? Theatre? Park? To name a few options. Then you have to narrow it down even further. Okay, so what kind of shopping? Market or High Street? Greenwich or Spitalfields? Brent Cross or Oxford Street? You get the picture. However, the beauty of living in London is that if you don’t fancy catching the new exhibition at the Tate on Saturday morning, you can always pop in after work on Thursday. If there aren’t any cheap tickets for the Saturday matinee of that play you want to see, you might be able to get them last minute in your lunch hour on Tuesday.
When it comes to where to go on holiday, however, I am a lot more vocal about my preferences. If I am going to spend hundreds of pounds and several days of annual leave on a trip overseas, I want it to be somewhere I really want to go. Okay, I will compromise, but equally I want my R&R needs to be catered for. Which means a week in Vegas ain’t gonna happen. A couple of nights en route elsewhere? That I can do.
Yesterday evening I went to my More To Life Than Shoes meeting. We talked at length about making decisions. What kind of decision maker are we? How do we make decisions? What do we take into consideration whilst making them? I thought about my own processes and it struck me that, so far in my life, I haven’t had to make any really tough ones. They all seemed like organic progressions rather than nail biting conundrums. Someone pointed out that maybe they felt like that because, like a river, my life was meandering along quite nicely, simply twisting and turning around boulders and obstructions with ease. However, as I come to a crossroads in my career, that river has become blocked, dammed. Corny as it sounded, it rang true. Things are not quite as clear cut. Do I go for more money in a job I don’t really want? Or a potential pay cut in a new sector that might help me achieve my future dreams? Typing it now, it seems quite obvious. But then I have to consider Him Indoors. The new job would tie me to London for at least another year, whilst he is keen to move further out. Then, of course, I have Little Miss Sensible tapping on my shoulder. A pay cut? And a gamble on something completely different? Are you crazy?
Someone at the meeting said that she made important decisions by writing a list of pros and cons. This slightly more organised approach sounded really attractive; weighing up what my heart says against my mind’s misgivings. Hmm. This could be a tricky one. Whichever path I take, it could be a potential disaster. But, as another wise woman pointed out, you can’t live in the present if you are still dwelling on the past. Forgive yourself for your mistakes and get on with it.
Of course, by the end of this week, this decision might be made for me. One of the potential jobs on the table might be taken away. That would make my life a lot easier in many ways, especially if it allows me to trundle down the road that I know I really want to take. Of course, I might not be so lucky, or both opportunities might come to nothing. Who knows? I guess the silver lining is, if that does happen, I have a bit more time to figure out what to do next.
So, as I conclude, I think I know what I am going to do. In the meantime, I am going to put the kettle on and start thinking about those pros and cons, to make sure. I just need to figure out if I want a cup of tea or a Hot Chocolate first. Tricky...