Often, we think that
decision making is saying “Yes” to an option. In reality, it is just the
opposite. The root Latin of the word decision literally means,
“to cut off.” Making a decision is about “cutting off” choices – cutting
you off from some other course of action. It is first saying “No” to those options that would not lead us to
success and then saying “Yes” to the remaining one that has highest probability
of resulting in success.
In day-to-day living, we are taking decisions all the time. However, our
decision making mostly happens unconsciously. We are driving and phone rings.
Hands automatically go for the phone. We sit down to eat, and hands
automatically go for the TV remote. It is as if we are living on an auto-pilot
mode. The problem with such living is that we are unable to say “No” to all
those things that distract us from the path of growth, success and happiness in
life.
What we need is to be conscious of what we are doing moment-to-moment.
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, in his book “Flow”, says that human mind cannot
process more than 110 bits of information per second. He further says that you
need to process 60 bits of information per second to fully understand what
someone is saying. Because of this limitation, we cannot understand more than 2
people talking.
We have often been told to pay attention to what we are doing, as if
attention is some kind of money which we can be paid. Nature, indeed, empowers
us with an attention currency of 110 bits of information every second. The
question then is where and how are we spending this currency. When we are on
the ‘auto-pilot’ mode of living, this precious currency is squandered by
engaging in multiple worthless tasks such as regretting about past actions which
cannot be changed or worrying about the future which is not yet born.
Being conscious in a moment means fully attentive – ability to use all
of 110 bits of information on a given task in that moment. Mihaly calls this a
state of “ecstasy”, when you lose yourself in the moment and you are said to be
“in the flow”. All great works of science, art and literature have come out of
this ‘flow’. When you are so attentive every moment of your life, you would be
able to say “No” to all the worthless thoughts and temptations before they take
possession of your mind and drive you towards actions that cannot result in
growth, success and happiness in life.
Decide wisely, decide consciously and decide moment-to-moment.
