We all make decisions, whether it is in life or business. We have the ability to say yes or no to things, activities or task throughout the day that can shape the life we are living. How are you making those decisions though? Are they out of Fear or Joy?
Fear and Joy based decisions are how all of our decisions are made. You may not realize it but each day we get to choose how we decide things and I am here to show you how to not only recognize when you make decisions out of fear or joy, but how to become more aware of how to make more joyful decisions in your life and business!
Fear Based Decisions
Fear based choices are the ones where we feel we do not have any choice in what we are deciding to do, we have to do it or something will happen. Raise your hand if you have felt this way just today… yes, I am raising my hand with you. These are the choices we are accustomed to making. The fear around them does not have to manifest with an actual feeling of being scared but it centers more around the feeling of not having power.
These decisions, while neither good nor bad, can hold us back because they can limit us in what we feel we have a choice in doing. I have made these decisions before, I even made one the other day. I was excited about a conference coming to Nashville in the Fall. I was so excited that I did not take the time to read everything on the website. I was in FOMO (fear of missing out) mode and emailed the organization asking about speaker submissions, with my gut telling me not to do it.
Low and behold I get an email back and with my head held low, realize it is plain as day that they already have the speakers chosen, they were just advertising registration. Granted this is not a huge end-all-be-all situation but had I not been in that FOMO mode I would have maybe saved myself a little grace and just gone with the flow of things.
Fear is not the only way we make decisions though, I want you to become more aware of the decisions we make out of Joy, because these are the ones we strive for!
Joy Based Decisions
Joy based decisions are the ones that seem easy, there is no effort in deciding and they come from a place of pure happiness. This is because there is NO fear tied to them or the outcome. The joy based decisions in our life are made because everything is in alignment. That could mean your values are aligned, your mindset is positive, and fear is almost laughable. When we make decisions out of joy there is no option of “failure”. If something were to not go right, the attitude is “Ok, well what can we learn to move forward and what is the opportunity in this situation.”
My biggest Joy based decision was starting my business! Now you probably are like, wait what?! Trust me, because before I started there was a lot of fear. Fear of failing, fear of not being enough for potential clients, even fear of it being all on me. Once I worked through those fears, got a solid business plan going, and realized if I did not do this, then there would be a lot of disappointment and resentment of myself, I knew this would be a pure joy decision to launch.
Since then it has been easy, yes there are days when I am all over the place, but it does not feel like work. It is truly what I know I am meant to do and that is where the joy comes from, because if I did not take this chance, I would miss it without knowing what it would be like.
These are the decisions I want you to focus on in your business and life. How much more simple would life be if we made all of our decisions based on if it was out of joy and not out of fear?
While the fear based decisions are the ones that we are more inclined to make, because of how our society is geared today, as long as you are aware how you are making decisions that is all that matters!
I want to challenge you this week to make a list, label one side fear and one side joy; anytime you make a decision write down what column it should go in based on how you made it. At the end of the week, take a look at your list and see what it looks like. I bet by the end there is more Joy than Fear because you will be way more aware of how your decisions not only are affecting your business but your life as well. Strive for the joy my friends and your life will be exponentially happier because of it!
Nicole is a Small Business & Confidence Coach for entrepreneurs who are ready to create their own version of success and one half of the hosting duo of the BeYOUtifully Bold in Business Podcast. Basically she really wants you to see the power you bring to the table in your business and truly be confident in the goals you have. You can find out more about her here.