Easy Choices, Hard Life. Hard Choices, Easy Life.

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Are you stuck in a loop of feeling unfulfilled but unsure how to break free? In this episode, we explore the tension between hard choices and easy decisions, delving into how these choices shape our lives. The discussion emphasizes the importance of accountability and self-honesty in decision-making.

• Hard choices lead to long-term growth and fulfillment 
• Easy choices create immediate comfort but lead to future struggles 
• Neuroplasticity allows us to rewire our brains for tougher decisions 

This episode isn't just about choice; it's about empowerment and taking responsibility for your happiness. If this episode hit home for you, be sure to share it with someone who needs it. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello and welcome to the Cameo Show.
I'm your host, cameo.
Today we are cutting throughthe noise and we're getting real
about the decisions that shapeour lives.
I want to dig into one of myfavorite adages hard choices as
I feel resistance in my own life, as well as raising two teens

(00:30):
and attempting to help themlearn how to make choices that
are in alignment with who theyare or who they want to become.
This idea is simple but superpowerful.
Decisions that are tough in themoment often lead to a better
life, while the choices that areeasy or easier tend to create

(00:50):
struggle in the long run.
And if you're not sure whichpath you're on, just take a look
around.
Hard choices require discipline,dedication, discomfort and
sometimes sacrifice.
They force us to grow and theydon't always feel good.
In fact, they're sometimes thechoices that we just do not want

(01:13):
to make.
We hold our ground, sometimesas long as we can to shy away
from these uncomfortabledecisions.
Things like saying no toinstant gratification, so
skipping happy hour to make surethat you can wake up for that
morning workout, or turning downa quick fix diet trend to stay

(01:39):
on the path of nutritionalwellness and wellbeing for
long-term health.
Other things like havinguncomfortable conversations,
whether it's setting boundarieswith people that you're in
relationships with familymembers, children or telling the
truth when it's easy to stayquiet, or sometimes stay quiet

(02:02):
when you really want to expressyour opinion.
It can also look like leaving ajob that drains you, even
though it provides a steadypaycheck, or walking away from
habits or people who no longerserve you and are no longer in
alignment with where you are.
Maybe you've just grown indifferent directions, and that

(02:24):
can be extremely painful.
So being able to do that, evenwhen it's painful, these choices
suck in the moment.
There's no sugarcoating it.
I'm not trying to act like it'snot a big deal.
It's huge and it's verydifficult.
They're heavy choices, butmaking them means that you're
choosing short-term discomfortfor long-term ease.

(02:45):
Now think about the peoplearound you, the ones who seem
grounded, confident, free.
It's easy to look at them fromthe outside and think they've
got lucky, or maybe they had ithanded to them, but the chances
are they didn't just stumbleinto that.
They made tough choices alongthe way, choices that lots of
people avoid, choices that canbe painful, not can be.

(03:09):
They usually are choices thatare painful and require patience
and persistence, require you tokeep your blinders up and
focused on further down the roadthan right now, in this moment,
than right now, in this moment.
Now we'll flip over to the easychoices that make life harder,
the ones that feel good rightnow and help you avoid that

(03:31):
uneasy, difficult moment, butlead to struggle later that lead
to, maybe, a repeat destinationthat you keep going back to by
making the same choice over andover and over again because it's
easy.
But you find yourselfquestioning why am I here again?
I don't want to be here,choosing seemingly small things

(03:53):
like hitting the snooze buttoninstead of going to the gym,
over and over and over againuntil you're frustrated with
your body or your energy levelsor your overall health is
suffering.
Or avoiding conflict to keepthe peace, resulting in
resentment that just bubbles andbubbles and bubbles and ruins
your relationships.
Or staying in a job that youhate because change is scary,

(04:17):
the unknown is scary.
So you wake up miserable everyday after sometimes going to bed
feeling physically ill or usingfood or alcohol or drugs or
some other coping mechanism tonumb your emotions rather than
work through them and addressthem head on.
And if you look around, you'llsee these patterns in others too

(04:40):
, people who constantly feelstuck, overwhelmed, victimized,
unfulfilled, unlucky.
Sometimes they've just madeeasy choices for too long.
And I say that with no judgment,because we all do it at times.

(05:01):
We all take the path of leastresistance.
It's a constant battle to showup in the moment and make a
harder choice to see the biggerpicture.
But at some point we have toget real with ourselves.
We have to take responsibilityfor the choices we make, because
no one is coming to make themfor us.
Here's the good news You're notstuck, because your brain is

(05:21):
constantly rewiring itself aboutwhat you do and what you think.
This is called neuroplasticityyour brain's ability to form new
connections and habits overtime, different synapses.
So if you've spent years makingeasy choices, your brain is
wired for comfort.
But, just like training anyother muscle, you can rewire it

(05:44):
to choose the harder, betterpath.
The more you push throughdiscomfort, the more you expose
yourself to uncomfortablesituations, the more your brain
adapts.
You don't have to just take myword for it that these
experiences become easier.
It's literally science and Iknow you've all experienced that
too.
That first workout brutal, butafter a month of consistency

(06:09):
it's routine.
The first awkward conversation,uncomfortable AF If people
still say that.
You shake, you get breathy,you're nervous, you stutter.
But the more you do it, themore confident you become in

(06:30):
your ability to speak up.
The first time you say no tosomething that you've done your
whole life, the first time youfeel like you have to explain
why you're saying no against thegrain, against the norm scary
as hell.
But it gets easier over time.
Your brain learns what youteach it.

(06:51):
The more you practice makinghard choices, the more natural
they become.
And I got to be honestsometimes they're so challenging
that it's almost like apersonal mission to be strong
enough to take it head on.
And in my experience, sometimesthe gap between the decision
I'm faced with and making thehard choice is, like, really

(07:14):
small, because I've practicedand I'm not perfect, but I'm
definitely better at it now thanI was five years ago, ten years
ago, six months ago.
Sheesh, it's constant.
So how do you start making hardchoices when everything in you
wants to take the easy route?
Well, you're going to have toget honest with yourself, and

(07:37):
that's the hard truth.
You're going to have to askyourself what does my future
self need from me today?
What choices will they bethankful for.
What different choices do Ineed to make right now that are
hard but will lead me down adifferent path toward where I
want to go, versus down the samepath that, though it may be

(08:01):
comfortable and familiar, isgoing to give me the same result
?
The same loop.
And start small.
Pick one hard choice and committo it.
Maybe it's a hard conversationyou've been avoiding.
Maybe it's putting on yourtennis shoes and going out for a
walk every day.
Maybe it's drinking waterinstead of diet soda.

(08:22):
Start small.
There's a ripple effect to theconfidence that you build when
you tackle something hard.
Even if it's small, even ifit's seemingly inconsequential,
it impacts the next decision andthe next decision and the next
decision.
And embrace it, because if youkeep reminding yourself that
this hard choice makes thingseasier, later you will continue

(08:46):
to grow and look at the peopleyou admire, not with jealousy,
not with the assumption thatlife just worked out for them,
but with curiosity.
What choices did they make thatyou've been avoiding?
Not comparison, curiosity,don't get it twisted.
They're very different thingsand, above all, take full
ownership.

(09:07):
This part stings, it sucks.
Sometimes it comes with likewhat feels like a punch to the
gut that you gave yourself, butit's very empowering.
No one's responsible for yourhappiness, your fulfillment,
your success just you.
And that means no more waiting,no more blaming, no more

(09:29):
excuses, just making the nextright choice and sometimes that
right choice is different thanwhat feels right in the moment
and remembering that everychoice you make is a vote for
the kind of life you want tolive.
The hard choices they're notfun, they stretch you, they're

(09:49):
painful, but they also set youup for a life of confidence,
freedom and ease, a life youtruly love.
It is possible.
The easy choices they keep youcomfortable, they avoid that
icky feeling in the moment offacing them.
They also keep you stuck Stuckwhere you are, stuck in a loop,

(10:21):
and you don't have to be there.
So I challenge you, as I oftendo when I'm on a podcast, solo,
speaking directly to you lookaround, look within and ask
yourself what's one choiceyou've been avoiding and make it
.
Know that it's going to be hardand it's going to suck.
It's probably going to suckreally bad.
It just does at first, nomatter what it is big or small,

(10:45):
you alone or involving otherpeople, but do it anyway.
Trust that your brain willadapt.
Every time you do it, it'screating new pathways, and know
that your future self will begrateful.
And one last thing believe thatyou deserve it, that you deserve

(11:08):
it and that you can.
I'm rooting for you.
I've been there, I am theresometimes and I can attest that
it really is true in myexperience.
So I'm not telling you whatdecisions to make.
I'm just kind of providing anidea for how, and hopefully it

(11:29):
will impact you in the same wayit has me.
Thanks for listening to thecameo show.
There are new episodes everyWednesday.
You can check us out at thecameo show podcast on Instagram
or at my website, cameo Elisebrauncom for more, including the
links to the YouTube channel orthe podcast, where you can
subscribe and follow along soyou don't miss a beat.
If this episode hit home foryou, be sure to share it with

(11:52):
someone who needs it until nexttime.