Every Decision Made Changes Who You Are, so Make Positive Decisions

Self improvement is a process. If you want to become a better leader, a better employee, a better spouse, a better friend, or even just better at a particular skill – it’s always a process that requires time and deliberate effort. 

But that process doesn’t have to involve something big. There is no 5 minute training montage like in the movies where a few cuts backed by upbeat music and we’re suddenly a drastically different person. In fact, 99% of the efforts that we make to change our character are small and we don’t even realize our character is changing. 

“Every time you make a choice you are turning the central part of you, the part of you that chooses, into something a little different from what it was before. And taking your life as a whole, with all your innumerable choices, all your life long you are slowly turning this central thing into a Heaven creature or into a hellish creature”

-C. S. Lewis

Every single decision we make each and every day slowly changes who we are. 

The person we are today is made up of every tiny decision we made yesterday. 

The person we are tomorrow is made up of every tiny decision we make today. 

If you want to be someone different in the future, you must start changing how you act now. 

What does this have to do with positive leadership? 

The best leaders weren’t born leaders – they didn’t trip through a door into an office and magically became a top tier leader. 

The best leaders out there work at it – they work at improving themselves each and every day. 

And each step of personal improvement happens with every decision you make. 

Do you cut a corner on the project because it’s easier? Do you make a cutting remark to tear down a colleague to make yourself appear better by comparison? Do you spread gossip? Do you fudge the numbers on a report? 

Or…

Do you complete the project to the best of your abilities even though it’s harder? Do you compliment your coworker’s work to build up their self image? Do you spread positivity in the office? Do you embrace the truth even when it might not be the best for you? 

Consistency creates character

Whatever you are consistent about is what you will become. 

All of the decisions we make, large and small, creates and defines us over time. These decisions slowly turn our character – for better or worse. 

And people notice all of this! Our colleagues notice these decisions. Our family notices these decisions. The core of our being, our character, slowly molds itself based on these decisions we make each and every day. 

Your character is reflected in your actions and your actions define your reputation. 

How do we ensure our character is headed in the right direction? 

First off, what is the right direction? 

That is the question you must answer for yourself. 

What character do you want to define who you are? 

Are you going to look to certain experts? Are you going to be defined by the character of your social circle? Are you going to use a higher power as your measuring stick? Whatever it is, identify it and define it. 

I STRONGLY recommend creating a label for what YOU want your character to be. Create a label and a definition of that label. Use the label as an accountability tool to help guide each decision you will make and keep moving forward in a deliberate direction. 

Obviously, I have picked the label “Positive Leader” to act as my measuring stick for how I act in the professional world and I am continually iterating on and exploring what the definition means to me. 

“The more we think about, write about, and talk about a thing happening, the more likely it is to happen.”

Lanny Bassham, Olympic gold medalist

I’m thinking about it every day, writing about it in my personal writings, and talking about it to others. This keeps it on the top of my mind and helps guide my decisions, large and small. When you want to learn about a topic, grow in a skill, or change a characteristic about you – the more top of mind the topic is, the more you’ll pursue whatever it is. 

This is my journey – what’s yours?