Where do bad choices come from?

We all make them from time to time.

You might not know what you need to know. This is where experience is created.

You might have an identity that pushes you to make those choices. If you’re determined to act like the person you have assumed you are, the choices come with the role.

Or, you might prioritize short-term benefits over the long-term costs of a bad choice. In this sense, the difference between a good choice and a bad one is simply which timeframe we’re considering.

Built into the idea of ‘choice’ is the agency and freedom to choose. But we waste that power every time we fail to realize we’re making a choice.

And there are two common reasons for this: we don’t believe we have the freedom to choose, or we’re not clear about what we’re trying to accomplish in the first place.

April 4, 2026