You Choose to React or Respond

By: Daniel Sitter

Choices abound. Sometimes choices confound us, while at other times, certain choices are rather obvious. Any way you approach the subject, choices present opportunities to either excel or hinder. As human beings, we were endowed by our Creator with the power of choice. It is one of the factors that differentiate persons from animals. Some people make these choices or decisions more easily than others.

Each day, we must decide how we will spend our precious twenty four hours and deal with all that the world presents to us. We choose how we will be affected by both everyday occurrences and those that are much more extraordinary.Whether consciously or unconsciously, we choose to either react or respond. These are not the same, for one is negative and one is positive. Which we choose may have a significant impact on our life and possibly those close to us.

Reacting to outside influences, usually beyond our control is generally a negative choice. Reacting implies that we have given charge of the situation to someone or something else. We surrender our input and any control in the matter.We are now at the mercy of the situation and are forced to be in reaction mode where we are constantly dodging bullets and expending great amounts of energy just to stay afloat.

In reacting to a situation, we do not anticipate that which is to come because we are too busy handling the present.The future then surprises us and the whole mess begins again.Responding to a situation is a positive choice. It is the opposite of reacting. It is proactive and anticipates that which is yet to come.

Responding is preceded by thought and often prayer. In responding, we take charge and have command over how the situation impacts us. We also have control over how it affects us internally. We decide upon the level of personal impact.

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Daniel Sitter is the author of the popular, award-winning e-book, Learning For Profit. Designed for busy people, his new book teaches simple, step-by-step accelerated learning skills, demonstrating exactly how to learn anything faster than ever before. Learning For Profit is currently available at the author’s web site http://www.learningforprofit.com/ and from numerous online book merchants. Mr. Sitter, having expertise in sales, marketing and personal development, is a frequent contributor to several publications.