I was reading a book by Shad Helmstetter, Ph.D., The Gift, and in this book he talks about some of the most important choices we will ever make. He says that when you first glance at some of the choices he lists, they seem to be insignificant, but when you really stop and think about each one, how they affect our attitude and life’s course is crucial. In his book that he wrote on making choices, he included a list of 100 of the most important choices we will ever make. In The Gift, he shares a few of those choices.
Note: Of course, those of us with chronic illness will see things on this list that we do not always have a say in what all of our choices are due to the unpredictability of our illnesses. But it makes a great point and there are things on this list that we all, no matter what our situation may be, can use to make a better life for ourselves.
- Who you spend most of your time with
- What your favorite foods are
- How often you call home
- What books you read
- How often or how seldom you smile
- What you watch on television and how much you watch
- Your hobbies
- How much you exercise
- The style and color of the clothes you wear
- Which telephone calls you return
- The appearance of your home
- How long something stays broke before you fix it
- How late you stap up at night and why
- What time you get up in the morning
- How well you listen to others
- How much risk you’re willing to take
- How you handle your money
- Whether you are a leader or a follower
- How calm you are
- How interested you are in other people
- How much time you take, just for yourself
- Whether you give free advice
- The kind of car you drive and what shape it is in
- What sports you participate in
- How much time you spend talking to your mate
- How much money you have in your bank account
- How you use credit cards
- How important you think you are
- How you deal with problems
- Who or what upsets you and why
- How much patience you have
- What you do when you don’t get your way
- How often you criticize someone else
- How you feel about what other people think of you
- How you take care of yourself
- How much you respect yourself
- How often you complain
- How much encouragement you give to others
- What you think about most
- What you choose to get done today
This is just a partial list of the different kinds of choices that we make that count the most. These are the choices that really control your life everyday. The little choices are what counts and the most and we are in control of these choices.
Tags: Shad Helmstetter, The Gift, choices, chronic illness
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