Stanley F. Bronstein – Personal Development BlogPersonal Development Blog of the Founder of the Achievement IQ Movement and Creator of the Laws of Positioning

Meditation for Thursday – December 24, 2009

There Are Always Alternatives.

WHAT ARE ALTERNATIVES?

Dictionary.com defines alternative as:

• one of the things, propositions, or courses of action that can be chosen
• affording a choice of two or more things, propositions, or courses of action
• a choice limited to one of two or more possibilities, as of things, propositions, or courses of action, the selection of which precludes any other possibility

LET’S EXAMINE THE DEFINITIONS

If you  notice, the all three definitions talk about having choices.  However, the third definition talks about how selecting one of the choices precludes the possibility of the other choices.

In other words, the third definition suggests that if you pick Alternative #1, then Alternative #2 (or #3, or #999) all become impossible.

DOES MAKING ONE CHOICE ELIMINATE ALL OTHERS?

Sometimes yes, sometimes no.

EXAMPLE #1 – If I make a left turn at the street corner it then becomes impossible for me to have made a right turn at that same street corner.  Selecting Alternative #1 precludes the possibility of Alternative #2.

However, please note that I could come back to that same street corner later in the day and make that right turn.

EXAMPLE #2 – If I have a choice of eating chicken OR vegetables for dinner, once I choose to eat chicken, I could still also choose to eat vegetables.  In this case, selecting Alternative #1 does NOT preclude the possibility of Alternative #2.

ANOTHER WAY OF LOOKING AT THIS

By saying there are ALWAYS alternatives, it means just that.

Sometimes in life we are put in situations where we believe we have only one choice.  Or we may have two choices, but don’t like either of them.

We feel we are stuck.

The solution is to look for yet another alternative.

There is a proverb that says:

When you come to a fork in the road, take the third path . . .

LOOK FOR THE ALTERNATIVES

What I’m suggesting is that you always look for the alternatives.  That’s what successful people do.  By opening up their minds to the possibility of alternatives, they see opportunities others do not see and then take advantage of them.

What do you think?

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