Making the right choice in the present moment can be tricky and stressful when, much of the time, we tend to have our eyes and thoughts on the future. And how do we know if it is ‘the right’ choice now if it has the potential to affect us in days, months or years to come?
Our children are asked to make their choice of subjects to study for their final two years at school when they’re 16 years old, often believing that this will dictate who or what they will become as adults. What enormous pressure to put on their shoulders when they’ve had little experience of the world beyond home and school! And it leaves scarce time for them to learn to live in and enjoy the present moment without feeling anxious about the future. Even worse, it creates an expectation that success or achievement only comes from reaching their chosen career path or destination.
Our values and beliefs tend to dictate the choices we’re making every single day whether we’re aware of making them or not. The way we respond to others. The way we react to irritations. The thoughts we have about ourselves. How present we are with our loved ones.
There are fundamental choices that I believe are part of every human’s value system at the Soul level. Love over fear, connection over separation, compassion over judgement, acceptance over intolerance and understanding over condemnation, for example.
Love, connection, compassion, acceptance and understanding are choices made from the heart.
Fear, separation, judgement, intolerance and condemnation are usually ego driven.
When faced with a difficult choice, practise going to the heart and feeling into it. Be present with it. Learning to recognise whether we feel lightness or heaviness helps us to know if we’re making the right choice. The more aligned we are with our heart and soul, the more at ease our mind and body will be.
