What is the difference between a choice and a decision?
Happiness is a choice! Giving up is a decision.
According to Merriam-Webster, a choice is:
1: the act of choosing : SELECTION finding it hard to make a choice
2: power of choosing : OPTION you have no choice
3a: the best part : CREAM Of the cavalry the king’s own was the choice.
b: a person or thing chosen; she was their first choice
4: a number and variety to choose among a plan with a wide choice of options
5: care in selecting
Definition of decision:
1a: the act or process of decidingthe moment of decision has come
b: a determination arrived at after consideration : CONCLUSION made the decision to attend graduate school
2: a report of a conclusion a 5-page decision a Supreme Court decision
3: promptness and firmness in deciding : DETERMINATION acting with decision
4a: WIN specifically, combat sports : a victory based on points awarded Former heavyweight champion kickboxer Sterling (Cash) McCallum took a unanimous decision over Cesar Rendon in an eight-round standard bout in Phoenix …— New York Times
b baseball : a win or loss officially credited to a pitcher has five wins in eight decisions
Moving to a different country or town, changing careers, staying single or getting married, getting abortion or raising kids, all fall under decisions and choices.
However, I always feel like making a decision is harder than making a choice. Red or black dress for a soirée is a choice. Stay single or start a family is a decision, and someone needs to be RESPONSIBLE! Or his/her behavior will lead to negative consequences.
Making a decision is not easy, here’s some questions we can ask ourselves that can help with making a decision:
- Will the decision I make affect other people and if so, how?
- What am I sacrificing because of my decision?
- Am I acting in a responsible manner?
- Will there be long-term consequences because of my decision?
I have considered all the possibilities, I gave myself sometime, and weighed the pros and cons, and I have decided to resign! Yes, it was my dream job, but I can’t handle pression and bull-$*** anymore!
I miss my kids and I live with them; I feel like I come home, cook, feed them, and take them to sleep. Is this the lifestyle I want? No.
I enjoyed working from home during COVID. Yes, COVID had some positive impacts. Skies were bluer, fewer cars were crashing, no gunshots, no crimes…people were nicer!
I have decided to find a remote job or maybe hybrid and take care of myself, my family, help my friends, and my community. A remote job with my current employer will still be a possibility.
I did not give up! I learned from previous mistakes to never give up. I just made the right decision, and I feel happy.
Some folks will think that I am not strong, resilient, or maybe hard worker. No, I worked hard, I achieved all my sales goals, I received tons of positive feedbacks from the university and other external clients. However, I had to finally listen to my inner self, and to my mom. She looked at me this weekend and said: “Your kids need your attention”
A Choice Theory:
In 1996, William Glaser presented the book The Theory of Choice for Behavior Management, which is based on the idea that love and belonging are among the most basic human needs. Therefore, human continuity in living and meeting his requirements and needs requires a sense of love, whether for family, friends, or anyone who cares about him.
This book also put forward the choice theory of behavior management three main points of discussion, which are as follows:
that all human beings possess behavior. That human behavior is chosen. The human being has the instinct and the motivation to fulfill the five basic needs, which are; Love, belonging, survival, strength, freedom, and fun. I didn’t read the entire book. But I was able to gather some helpful information.
What is the realm of quality in choice theory? When an individual needs to feel satisfied and is not able to do so, he will have the desire to continue searching for an environment in which he feels that way, which William described in the name of the world of quality, and it is the environment through which the individual’s needs can be met in another way, either through his values, or his beliefs.
Thus, the individual can manage his behavior better when he reinforces his healthy world of quality, instead of highlighting compulsion, this theory focuses on managing behavior based on the world of quality and self-evaluation by Modeling the choices that can be made, which enhances the individual’s personal responsibility.
I’ll stop here or this will lead to a different article.
You are not the victim of the world, but rather the master of your own destiny. It is your choices and decisions that determine your destiny.” ― Roy T. Bennet
Carolina Mom 