Act, Don’t React

We have numerous situations every day where we need to take action.  We need to make a decision or we need to do something.  The key is to act, not to react.

When we act, we take at least a few minutes to think about what we want to accomplish and the best way to achieve it.  When we react, we do something without thinking about it first.

There are times when reacting is necessary.  If there is an emergency, a disaster, or someone is hurt, often we react and do what needs to be done rather than thinking about it.  This can be good.  In situations like this, quick action is necessary.

Usually, though, we do have at least a little time to think before we take action.  For example, recently I reacted immediately to something that someone wrote.  Almost as soon as I did, I realized I was overreacting to the situation.  However, it was too late to take it back.  All I could do at that point was apologize.

Fortunately, this situation was with a long-time and very good friend.  She forgave me!

It would have been much better, though, had I acted (thought about the situation for even a minute) rather than reacted.  Another lesson learned!