“The line between
failure and success is so fine that we scarcely know when we pass it – it’s so
fine that we are often on the line and we do not know it. How many times have
we thrown up our hands at a time when with a little more effort, a little more
patience, we would have achieved success?” - Elbert Hubbard
A friend posted this quotation earlier today, and I think it’s
so fitting for this journey that most of us are on. We walk such a fine line
every day, making decisions that are seemingly harmless, but could potentially
have such an impact on our success (or failure). And what is a decision,
anyway? Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary
describes it as follows:
De-ci-sion noun \du-‘si-zhen\
: a choice that you
make about something after thinking about it: the result of deciding.
: the ability to make
choices quickly and confidently.
So how do we go about make a decision, particularly one that
is informed and comes from a firm foundation of knowledge and experience? How
do I know what food to choose if I've not done all my research into the
subject? How do I know what the best, most effective exercise is for me without
exploring all my options? Just saying something is “healthy” doesn't make it so.
So I’ll read.
I’ll explore.
I’ll open my mind.
I’ll educate myself on what it means to make a healthy,
informed decision. Without the knowledge to make an informed decision, the fine
line we are walking between success and failure gets a lot thinner.
I've realized that I
need to attack my lifestyle the same way that I do my job – with research,
education, and a commitment to excellence. Every other way to effect a change
in my life is no longer an option.
And I’ll share it all with you.
I think you're right....education is a hugely important step! The problem in our society is that there are so many different directions to go. One article says eat all the fruit you can, the next says avoid fruit because it's high in sugar, then you get Paleo, Mediterranean, low carb, low fat, gluten-free......and on and on. It gets overwhelming! You can't eat everything "they" say you should eat every day, and you can't avoid everything "they" say to avoid. My point is, don't let it overwhelm you and shut you down! There's a whole lot of common sense involved as I'm sure you know. As disappointed as I was that eating spicy food every day didn't make me drop 50 lbs.....I wasn't really surprised. ;)
ReplyDelete30 + hour marathon work sessions in my basement shop existing on Adderall and cigarettes worked for me. ...but I wouldn't recommend it. ;)
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ReplyDeletecdreher - I couldn't agree more! It's fairly ridiculous, the number of diets and diet plans out there. I've vowed not to diet - but to really learn what is good and what isn't. It think it's a healthier way to go, and I don't feel as bad when I occasionally splurge!
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