In 2015, news of the Gorkha earthquake in Nepal shocked the world.
Over 9,000 innocent lives were taken away too soon. My heart ached when I saw photos of the victims. I couldn't imagine how much pain and grief their families and friends were going through.
It brought me back to my freshman year in college, when my classmate suddenly passed away. She was only 19. I saw her the day before she passed. We had a P.E. class together. She was a bright, kind and beautiful young lady. I never could have imagined I would not see her again.
At her funeral, while I was waiting in line to enter the temple, all the things that I hadn't done yet in my life started flooding into my thoughts.
All I could think was, "She must have had so many things that she wanted to do."
I remember her smile. And if she was with us today, I know she would have done amazing things to makes this world a better place. Nearly 20 years later, as I share this with you, emotions still come up and make me teary-eyed.
I wanted to share this story because I know there are many of you reading this whose careers and lives are not going the way you want.
You feel frustrated because your wheels are spinning, but you are not moving forward.
You are exhausted most of the time, and you feel lost, helpless, and unsure about so many things in your life.
If this resonates with you, then I hope you take this next question seriously: Isn't it time to slow down and re-evaluate what you really want?
I've compiled a list of 9 life-changing questions below to get you started.
But first, take a deep breath and relax. Clear your mind. Give yourself a few minutes to answer each one. You might want to grab a journal so you can get all your thoughts down and refer back to them later.
How would you spend your time if you had only ...
... 1 year to live?
... 6 months to live?
... 3 months to live?
... 1 month to live?
... 1 week to live?
... 3 days to live?
... 1 day to live?
... 1 hour to live?
And finally
... one breath left to live?
After you answer the questions, notice how do you feel?
What did you learn about yourself? Your current situation? Your hopes for the future?
Life is an accumulation of decisions and choices.
Where you are now in your career and life is a result of the decisions and choices you have made up to now.
I don't believe there is such thing as a wrong decision.
But I do believe that staying in a state of indecision can be detrimental.
In fact, any decision is better than indecision. Why? Because indecision means you are not taking responsibility for your life.
When you are stuck in indecision, you let situations happen to you. You become reactive rather than proactive.
Leaders avoid indecision; they decide and act.
You can learn to do this, too.
To make better decisions, you first need to determine what is really important to you. You need to define your guiding principles and align your actions with them.
And you probably need support.
It's hard to cultivate inner strength and build an unshakable belief in yourself on your own.
That is what I work on over and over with my clients. I help them build a strong foundation that enables them to excel in their careers and lives.
But, the truth is, you are the only person who can make the call.
You are in charge of your life.
Are you ready to let go of indecision and take charge of your life?
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Nozomi Morgan, MBA, is a certified Executive Coach and the Founder and President of Michiki Morgan Worldwide LLC. Addition to coaching, she speaks and trains on leadership, career, professional development and cross-cultural business communication.
Visit www.nozomimorgan.com to learn more about Nozomi . There, you can download the free Leadership Discovery Tool. Follow Nozomi on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Google+.