Start with a STOP...

The following is submitted by Pecoraro’s Academy of Fitness & kickboxing… Call for more information on our various Fitness, Kickboxing, Self-Protection & Martial Art programs for all ages – 795.3135

Every good decision starts with a STOP.  More often than we like, most of us face choices that can have a serious and lasting impact on our lives.  Do we go along with the crowd?  Do we tell someone off, quit a job, or end a relationship?  Unfortunately, these decisions are not preceded by a drum roll warning us that the stakes are high.  Even worse, we often don’t have a lot of time to figure out what to do.  It is no surprise that most bad decisions — the ones that mess up our lives — are made impulsively or without sufficient reflection. 

Ancient proverbs warn us to “count to ten” or “think ahead”.   But anger, poor planning, fatigue, fear, frustration, stress, and impatience create obstacles to wise choices.  Just as we learned to look both ways before crossing a street, we can learn to systematically analyze every important decision-making situation to allow us to arrive at effective and ethical conclusions.

Each decision, therefore should start with a stop — a forced moment to clarify our goal, evaluate our decision and to consider alternative strategies to achieve the best possible result.  Self-discipline and moral willpower is what is needed to overcome temptations and emotions that could lead to a rash, foolish, or ill considered choice.