Use my experience to make better choices.

1. Understand that most decisions are reversible. Even the really big decisions.

I recently left my full-time, six-figure job to start my own consulting agency and scale my blog and podcast.

At first, I agonized over this decision. One of my mentors told me to leave my job but I hesitated for more than a year.

I felt that once I made this decision there was no going back.

But one of my friends asked me, “what’s the worst-case scenario?”

I said, “I fail at my business and have to get a job”.

He said, “exactly. Your worst-case scenario is most people’s best-case scenario.”

I quit my job shortly after this chat.

Most people hesitate to take good risks because they feel like the decision is permanent. But I can safely say that 80% of life decisions are reversible. For the 20% that aren’t, take more time to think about them.

2. Decisions made with a short-term view will only produce short-term thinking.

Quitting my job with a secure income seems ridiculous in the short term.

To most of my friends and family, this decision seemed odd.

But when I started to think about what I would regret when I turned 80 years old, quitting my job to take a risk on myself was the best decision I could take.

I know I would always regret working for someone else my whole life and never taking a chance on myself.

My lack of boldness would haunt me forever. I don’t want to be the old man saying, “I wish I had…” or “I should have done…”.

I would rather try and fail than play it safe and regret it.

If you’re stuck on a decision. Picture your 80-year-old self thinking about your life. What would make you proud to reflect on? That’s your answer.

3. Deciding not to make a decision is still a decision.

My hesitation to not quit my job and work for myself was not delaying my decision; it was my decision.

Most people only calculate the cost of taking a risk.

But they never calculate the cost of staying the same.

While I was receiving a steady paycheque with a great work-life balance, it came at the cost of mental health and sanity.

People around me could notice that I had become disengaged from work.

That disengagement infected other parts of my life too. Because I had to use my energy to get through a day of work, I was exhausted to exercise or catch up with friends on the weekend.

Remember that every decision has a cost. Even the decision to stay the same. Don’t wait until staying the same cost more than changing.

4. There are positive powers of painful life regrets.

What do you regret most in the past? Not saving more money? Not starting your own business? Not connecting enough with friends or family?

When used properly, painful life regrets are a helpful tool to make better decisions.

Look into your past and think about what you could change if you went back in time. What were some decisions you wish you made better?

You tend not to repeat decisions that are painful to think about.

Everyone has regrets. Don’t ignore them. Learn to use them better. Regrets of the past can be used to create a better future.

5. You need to take risks to move your life forward.

Every decision you make has a risk.

But not all risks are created equally.

We live in a time when risks are not so risky anymore.

My consulting business is purely online. I don’t have any inventory, staff or expensive overheads or start-up costs.

I started my business for less than $2,000 and have already secured over $50,000 of project work for 2022.

I don’t need to go into crippling debt or bet my livelihood on my business succeeding. That’s too much pressure when trying to build your business.

I couldn’t really go into negative clients and because I have little to no overheads, I wouldn’t really need to go into debt either.

But if my consulting business takes off, there is a high upside. I can bring on contractors to deliver the work so the work is not constrained by the hours I am available to work.

Look for risks that have limited downside but unbounded upside. They exist everywhere.

Starting a blog, podcast or content creation business are examples of a limited downside but unlimited upside businesses.

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