You Snooze, You Lose

Lately....I feel like there has been a little bit of snoozing and losing in my life.  :)  From missing breakfast and morning scripture study for a few extra minutes of sleep, to not hiking Timp because 3:00 am is really early, or not buying a townhouse because I'm scared to move forward (I didn't realize how much I liked the option until it was gone), or just making decisions in general.  Thinking about some of these things lately has helped me realize that life, decisions, relationships, commitments, etc. are messy.  They can be hard, but getting up and moving forward is better than snoozing and losing.  :)

I think this is somewhat related to an interesting discussion I had with a friend lately.  Making decisions can be hard.  Sometimes too many choices make it even harder.  I'm reading an interesting book lately called The Paradox of Choice that explains the opportunities that freedom and choice give us, but at the same time the immobilizing effect too many choices can have on some people.

Here are a few other interesting articles:

• Fastcompany - Why Too Many Choices is Making You Unhappy
• The Economist - You Choose
• Business Insider - Cutting Down on Choice is the Best Way to Make Better Decisions
• The New Yorker - When it's Bad to Have Good Choices
• New York Times - Too Many Choices: A Problem That Can Paralyze
• New York Times - The Trap of Too Many Choices

Again, somewhat related, this is an interesting talk by Elder Bruce C. Hafen (August 1979) about dealing with ambiguity and uncertainty and making choices - On Dealing With Uncertainty:
"It seems to me that the most productive response to ambiguity is at level three, where we not only view things with our eyes wide open, but with our hearts wide open as well. When we do that, there will be many times when we are called upon to take some action at a point where we think we need more evidence before knowing what to do. Such occasions may range from following the counsel of the Brethren on birth control to accepting a home teaching assignment. My experience has taught me always to give the Lord and his church the benefit of any doubts I may have when some such case seems too close to call. I stress that the willingness to be believing and accepting in these cases is a very different matter from blind obedience. It is rather, a loving and knowing kind of obedience."

This one is wonderful too, by Elder Henry B. Eyring (March 1982) - A Law of Increasing Returns:
"The simple fact is that there is a God who wants us to have faith in him. He knows that to strengthen faith we must use it. And so he gives us the chance to use it by letting some of the spiritual rewards we want most be delayed. Instead of first effort yielding returns, with a steady decline, it’s the reverse. First efforts, and even second efforts, seem to yield little. And then the rewards begin, perhaps much later, to grow and grow."