The Power of Little Decisions

“Little” decisions are everything. They usually make the difference between success and failure – and they make your “big” decisions happen.

I just got home after a day of work and a visit to the Chicago Auto Show with my fam. We live about an hour north of Chicago, and we drove down @ 5pm – evening rush hour. And it was lightly snowing. We Chicagoans can handle our snow, but the drive down still took about 2 hours all told. Believe me, right now I’m exhausted – the bed is ~~calling~~ screaming my name.

However, I’m up writing this post.

Why? Because a couple weeks ago I made the “big” decision to commit to this whole blogging, going-for-it, pursuit of change thing.

Because the “old” Mike would have went right to bed, turned on the TV, and fallen asleep to the Olympics.

Because this little decision to stay up and write for a few minutes contributes to my larger goals.

There are plenty of areas where I struggle to make the correct “little” decision – mainly getting up early to work out or work on business stuff – still hasn’t happened.

I’m telling you now, though, that the tiny successes I’ve had in the past week or so have made it so much easier to make the correct “little” decisions when it comes to this blog and this business.

Make the “big” decision to chase your dreams. Make the “little” decisions every day to make that dream happen, and it’ll all start snowballing. Pretty soon, the “little” decisions won’t even be conscious decisions anymore. They’ll just be “the way you live” or “the way you work.”

Greg DeSaye

I enjoy your posts Mike. I agree with a lot of the things you say. Keep up the hard work and kudos for attempting to break life's habitual rabbit hole. Hope all is well.
Scott

Good way to think of it.

A few years ago I came up with something similar – the “little mess”. All big messes are made of little messes – a dish to wash, some bills to pay, etc. So I started trying to clean up 5 little messes every morning before work. Didn't take long before the house got (and stayed!) much neater.
http://simplifi.de/ Luke @ simplifi.de

Good for you, Mike. You're right on – it's all about the little decisions. The devil really is in the day-in day-out details.
http://www.pursuitofchange.com/ Mike Tiojanco

Thanks for the read Greg! Hope everything is going well for you too.
http://www.pursuitofchange.com/ Mike Tiojanco

Yup – life is lived in little decisions. Hopefully all these little decisions about this blog lead somewhere one day!

I like a lot of what you're saying over on simplifi.de too. I'm way more about freedom of time than cashing in. I'm sure you've checked out Zen Habits and other similar blogs. Trying to get my house decluttered even more, which would definitely increase my ability to focus on this stuff.

Thanks for the read!
http://twitter.com/simplifide Luke Wilson

Thanks for the kind words, Mike.

Decluttering the house is big – the more you get rid of, the less you have to take care of! I live in a small apartment, and I'm not evening using up all of the storage space right now (but it's a well-designed apartment with lots of storage).
http://artofgreatthings.com/2010/02/this-is-how-to-be-remarkable/ This is how to be remarkable

[...] The Power of Little Decisions by Mike Tiojanco [...]
lisacle

You know, Mike, I've found this to be so true in my own life. Have you noticed, too, that when you make that little decision to do something that needs to be done but that you'd rather not do (like staying up to write this blog post rather than going to bed) it often isn't nearly as onerous as you thought it would be? Someone once told me that if you are prepared and willing to go the extra mile, you often don't have to. Funny how that works!
http://www.pursuitofchange.com/ Mike Tiojanco

Definitely Lisa, The biggest problem is just starting. The little tasks or decisions that you put off just become bigger and bigger in your mind.

However, once you actually sit down and take care of something, it's rarely the monster you've made it out to be.

Thanks for reading and commenting!
Katforsure

After 50 years on this planet, today, for the first time, I have discovered the power of decision. I am amazed. It is like some magical superpower. When you decide…really decide… the way forward becomes so clear, straight, and true. I become empowered to make more decisions. It sounds so simplistic, but so many of us spend our lives being tossed willy nilly by the winds of change, or letting our lives happen to us instead of us happening to our lives. I can’t wait to make the next decision, large or small. I feel like I own a magic wand. Move over, Harry Potter.
http://www.pursuitofchange.com/ Mike Tiojanco

My brother bought a copy of Hermione’s wand this summer at the Harry Potter exhibit – so they’re there (for $50…).

But seriously, deciding to act or deciding to change makes all the difference. I really like your point about deciding what your life will be instead of being pushed around or just dealing with whatever happens to you.

Good luck!