Too much emphasis is placed on making good choices. My basic choice is to pay attention, and not much else matters. I want to be aware. If I am aware, all the rest will follow.
Many people have debated for a long time whether humans have a free will. Heroes of mine, such as Brian Greene, simply deny that humans have free will. I’m wondering if it even makes any difference. I’m beginning to think that I actually don’t have a choosing power that is totally free, but I have a different perspective than a cosmologist like Brian. I think what what appears to be a free-will choice of mine is simply a rational follow-up to what my mind has perceived.
I don’t put much effort into making decisions. What I really want to do is pay closer attention. That’s a decision that may mean something.
Sometimes, I simply need to pay attention for a longer time. Rushed decisions are often logical decisions, but they are made on limited, often faulty information. If I have allowed my data gathering to take its own sweet time, I am more likely to make decisions that I won’t want to change later on.
Part of the faulty data gathering is often not so much factual, just incomplete. Faulty data often means that I have been paying too much attention to my feelings. My feelings put the spotlight on and highlight specific pieces of information. Based on my feelings, I pay too much attention to those pieces of information. Anxiety and fear often precede and shape rushed decisions. These and other feelings rush me into actions that are based on faulty data or limited information.
I especially want to pay attention to my feelings and be aware of how they are influencing my attention.
I also seem to be more satisfied with the outcome when I take my time to make decisions, to choose a course of action. Decisions made with a speck of information are actually not free decisions. My decisions become free by allowing myself enough time to gather information, absorb the whole reality, immerse myself in an intimate awareness. Appropriate action follows focused awareness. In effect, the decision becomes no decision. The action naturally follows awareness.
My choices are all about choosing to pay attention. All else will follow, naturally.