Consequences Aren’t Optional

Every choice you make comes with some sort of consequence. In an instant you can only pick one path, and you must deal with the repercussions of not picking any of the others.

In the words of Sheldon B. Kopp, a brilliant American psychotherapist, you’re pretty much free to do whatever you like. You only need to face the consequences.

Your power to choose is unlimited! You are free to make any choice you want – as long as you’re ready to accept the consequences. Freedom isn’t a matter of somehow wriggling free of the costs of your choice – that’s never an option. It means nothing can stop you from doing anything at all, so long as you’re willing to pay those costs.

Economist Thomas Sowell summed things up by saying that there are no solutions, only trade-offs. The only question to ask about any choice is what the price is, and whether or not it’s worth paying.

 “What we think or what we know or what we believe is in the end of little consequence. The only thing of consequence is what we do.”
-John Ruskin

“It is easy to dodge our responsibilities, but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities.”
-Josiah Stamp

“Sometimes when I consider what tremendous consequences come from little things, I am tempted to think there are no little things.”
-Bruce Barton

“You are free to choose, but you are not free to alter the consequences of your decision.”
-Ezra Taft Bensen

As the saying goes, “Every action has an equal and opposite reaction.” This holds true for our lives as well. The choices we make today can shape our future, for better or worse. It is important to be aware of the consequences of our actions and to take responsibility for them. Whether we realize it or not, we are constantly making choices that have the potential to change the course of our lives. Choose wisely, there are consequences.