Choose Your Battles

Choose Your Battles

We've said a zillion times, life is NEVER a 'cakewalk', that life is a journey of brawls, confrontations, fights, scuffles, name it, life is that kind of a hodge-podge of everything that pertains to conflicts. So, WHERE do we end up with all these?  YES dude, Choose Your Battles.  Knowing WHICH battles to fight [and which to leave for another day OR even walk away from altogether] is critical to surviving life itself 

Early in life, more often than NOT, I was in a quandary, like, should I bury my head deep into the sand? OR should I arm myself and go out there up front?  Thing is, if you find yourself fighting one too many battles, on too many fronts, it is very likely that you will end up feeling drained of either emotional, mental and/or physical energy.  WHAT's more, your relationships [and if it's at work, your performance] will inevitably be impacted.  There's NO way out of those implications.  Once I felt I was in the middle of incessant crossfires [between my work colleagues then, with one faction lobbying more support for the project team while the internal stakeholders were taking a stand from a commercial perspective.  And there I was in the midst of things

Out of naiveness that time, I asked myself, should I see NOTHING, hear NOTHING and in the end, ignore anything?  BUT I asked myself that time, am I a NON-ENTITY?  Then I realized that I am NOT a NON-ENTITY. THAT I am a part of the equation.  THAT I am one of the relevant players.  THAT I was entitled to speak up and even opine.  Eventually, I realized [before it was too late] that I will NOT take the stance of ignorance.  Thinking that I had to fight a battle that actually belongs to someone else is a very easy mistake to make

WHAT's a recurring risk in our life is that sometimes, you can get involved in another person's battle WITHOUT even meaning to.  Alternatively, you might be the kind of person WHO likes to 'stick up for' your more timid friends or colleagues.  Ooooops, endeavor to resist falling into that TRAP [at all costs].  And if it's someone else's battle, then someone else needs to be fighting it [and NOT you].  Thing is, you have ENOUGH battles of your own to contest in life.  Even IF you felt you had that gumption and energy to take on another one, your arsenal is NOT a bottomless pit

Our takeaway:  Truth of the matter, assess the situation with a long-term perspective.  WHAT difference will winning one battle make in the long-term?  To answer that seemingly casual question, you need to step back and look at the BIG picture.  That might mean your relationship with your boss, the direction of your career OR if it is a family matter, WHAT happens to the family when all the rubles and dust settle down?  Really, you got to CHOOSE YOUR BATTLES, dude❗❗❗

Choose Your Battles

Choose Your Battles

Hey Hey Hey, if we are fully armed, can we just go out there, pick on anyone and expect to remain unbruised and end up as the last man standing?  No sirrrrrs.  Even history tells us that the generals from way way back.  Napoleon, the great French general who was heavily bemedalled and decorated with so many battles won found his ill-fated invasion of Russia as the final nail on his coffin as the sheer size and climate of Russia decimated Napoleon's forces.  If only he heard that we got to  Choose Your Battles💎💎💎

Knowing what battles to fight [or which ones you should either avoid or leave behind, or worst, even walk away in the middle of the skirmish] remains the most critical to success.  If and when we find ourself fighting too many battles [on too many fronts], trust me, you and me will end up heavily drained whether emotionally, mentally or even physically.  What then worsens things is that the quality of life and even our performance whether at work or in our business will be impacted.  Who says fighting too many battles will NOT take its toll on us❓❓❓

So HOW do we CHOOSE OUR BATTLES?  Thinking that you have to fight a battle that actually belongs to someone else is a very easy mistake to make.  Sometimes we do get involved in another person's battle without even meaning to.  Alternatively, we might be the kind of person who likes to 'stick it up' on behalf your timid colleagues.  If at all, RESIST falling into that trap💊💊💊

Then, down the line, let's ask ourselves, WHAT DIFFERENCE WILL WINNING THIS BATTLE MAKE IN OUR LONG TERM? To answer that question, step back and look at the BIG PICTURE because that might mean your strategy.  OR your relationship with your boss at work.  OR might mean the direction of your career [which you DON'T want to get derailed].  When you consider all the possible outcomes, assess how will they affect the BIG PICTURE❎❎❎

Then flip the coin and ask yourself, WHAT IF YOU LOSE that battle?  This is the way to go, assess things both ways.  An evaluation of the downsides is NOT a reason to avoid going to that battle BUT instead weighing the downsides against the upsides in a clear-headed fashion will help us down the road to identify if IS IT REALLY WORTH FIGHTING THAT BATTLE?  Then if you DON'T fight that battle, will you ever live with yourself afterwards?  Point is, whichever tack you take, you should NOT be remorseful or regretful at all in the future. Do Choose Your Battles in life📗📘📙

Choose Your Battles

Choose Your Battles

Who says we should always be 'battle ready' in life?  No sirrrrrrs.  On the contrary, we should not be bracing for battles at all.  True we got to be ready if something inimical to us arises but that should be far and few in between.  In fact, if you had the room to wiggle, embrace this age-old mantra:  Choose Your Battles.  Otherwise, DON'T court conflicts.  Shy away from potential 'powder kegs' that may just blow out to your detriment💡💡💡

Knowing which battles to fight [and maybe leaving it for another day [which you hope WON'T come]] is important enough to be successful in life itself.  If you find yourself fighting one too many battles, and worse on too many fronts, you may end up feeling drained of either a combination of mental, emotional and/or physical energy.  Worse, both your performance either at your business or at work and coupled with your relationships with your partner/spouse and/or loved ones may inevitably suffer as a result⏳⏳⏳

 Hard to Choose Your Battles but it's NO rocket science though.  Thinking that you have to fight a battle that actually belongs to someone else is a very mistake to make.  Sometimes you can get involved in another person's battle without even meaning to.  Or worse, you might be that kind of person who likes to "STICK UP FOR" your more timid BFF. Endeavor to resist falling into that TRAP at all costs💊💊💊

 Oh, I grabbed this anonymous poster because it speaks volumes.  Let's face it.  In life, we will come across all shades of personalities including the 'petty people'.  But as this poster goes, if your life is BIGGER and BETTER than those petty people, just shy off from the 'petty' ones.  NEVER stoop down to their level because they will [surely] drag you down in a dirty way not deserving of your values and persona.  And if it's someone else's battle, then someone else needs to be fighting it, not you at all💹💹💹

To quote Sun Tzu, the famous Chinese general and philosopher during the Eastern Zhou period in China, "THE WISE WARRIOR AVOIDS THE BATTLE'.  And if you're not stomped with that argument, do take a step back and look at the big picture.  And DON'T forget to ask yourself:  WHAT HAPPENS IF I LOSE THE BATTLE?  Think of the downsides, the risks.  Will you just throw out through the window all your efforts and successes in the past [and get dirtied in the mud]❓❓❓