I recently commented on a fellow blogger’s post about how I felt frustrated with my blog and almost deleted it. Her response to me was to ‘never make permanent decisions on temporary feelings’. Deep isn’t it? Let’s take a moment to let that sink in because I am certain you need to hear this about something you are dealing with right now. I know I sure did! And after reading her response, I started thinking about all of the decisions I would’ve made if I allowed myself to act impulsively.
I would be divorced for the umpteenth time
I can count the number of times I prayed for a marriage and hoped that the ‘flavour of the month’ would pop the question. Ironically, I most likely would’ve said yes to any Tom, Dick, or Harry that asked. It was less out of how I felt about the guys, but more so how I perceived marriage to be.
Every Disney movie or fairytale ends with a “they lived happily ever after”. Every Hallmark couple somehow manages to fall in love over the course of a week. And every happy kid had two parents. I was doomed from the start — led to believe that love was the butterflies you feel when you see someone cute. And if I had allowed myself to act impulsively on those stupid hormones, I would’ve been married and divorced based on that feeling! *Cough. Britney Spears*
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If I allowed myself to act impulsively, I would be unemployed…
Gosh, this one is an impulse that I am still fighting with every fiber in my body. For the sake of not making it a reality, I’ll keep it as condensed as possible. Hehe!
My story is simple: every time I feel overwhelmed at work, I think about how I don’t ‘need‘ to work. I am doing it by choice. Every time I get irritated by my boss or colleagues, I think about how I could possibly earn more doing something less tedious. And when I need a third cup of coffee to get through the day, I wonder what drug was slipped into my drink to get me to sign my contract.
I could go on and on, but I’m sure you get the point. But it gets worse than that… Forget quitting – if I had acted on my feelings, my sleep-deprived, anxious and impatient self would’ve gotten her butt kicked to the curb on day 3. And yes, I am proud to say I would’ve at least lasted 3 whole days!
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I would’ve had to declare bankruptcy
As I write this, I am thinking about all of the people who think I am great with money. If you are one of the delusional people, I hate to break the news to you… Not only am I bad with money, but I would also purchase a yacht in a heartbeat if I could.
Back in university, I had a habit of ‘depression spending’. What this means is that I would basically spend on food or clothes whenever I felt down. Call it retail therapy if you like, but the connotation of therapy is that it is remediating the problem. And in my case, not only was I not resolving the problem, I was adding flames to it!
When I was depressed because I was broke, I would spend money on myself. Guess what came after that expense? If you guessed more brokeness, you’re wrong… What followed was debt. Credit card debt!
So yeah, if I allowed myself to act impusively, I would owe more than Japan’s debt-to-GDP!
And I wouldn’t have any friends!
Many people know me as the diplomatic girl who doesn’t even swear… Others know me as a quiet pacifist who would never start or engage in an argument. Is this who I am? Yes, most times. Is this how I feel inside? Absolutely not!
If I allowed myself to act impulsively, I honestly think I would be in jail right now! Not only do I have a shorter temper than a toddler’s attention span, I also am very impatient. So when I think of all the times I bit my tongue to be a better friend, it amazes me how my brain hasnt exploded!
If you are one of those people who is able to act on their emotions and still be loved by all, spill the beans please. What is your secret?!
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Conclusion
If you made it this far in the post, thank you for sticking around. And, don’t worry, there is a point to my ramblimgs. But because I am feeling impulsive right now, I don’t think I will share it. 🙂
Now it’s your turn. What are some of the consequences you would experience if you allowed yourself to act impulsively?
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retire early and hit the travel road when safe. still plan to do so in a couple of years, but not quite yet )
That’s great advice she gave you! We all act impulsively sometimes so it’s good to have the reminder and to know it’s not just us!
The first one made me choke on my coffee 🤣 😂 🤣
Well seeing your list…i am glad that you didn’t act impulsively …
Hahahaha girl you have no idea… I do act impulsively sometimes, but at least it hasn’t caused any lasting damage! I take it you’re less impulsive?
Well only place where my habbit of procrastination helps…. 🙄 🤣 😂
I am the kind of person who overthinks things and rarely acts impulsively, especially If I’ve got an important decision to make. Some might see this as a great quality—like self-discipline, but it can also be debilitating as in losing sleep, worrying about things beyond my control. In some ways I am glad I’m this way, but in other ways I’m envious of people who are more impulsive. Since my wife is much more likely to make snap decisions, we balance each other out nicely.
I absolutely love that quote. It’s very powerful. I’m sure I would have experienced all the same consequences as you, to be honest. No actually, I think I would change the first one to “I would never have got married”.
P.S. I’m glad you didn’t delete your blog.
I relate to this post 1000% This is one of my favorite posts of yours 😃 If I acted impulsively, I would absolutely be in jail for beating people with my cane who don’t wear masks or socially distance themselves around me.
Hahaha Amy geez, so much anger inside you! lol I don’t know why but I find that super cute!
Here’s to keeping the monsters inside us locked up 😀
I agree with your sentiments.
I would be broke, unemployed and possibly in prison because of my temper, too! 🤣
In prison? Oooooh my! Rachel, I’m glad you’re safely out of the orange jumpsuits!
I too would be divorced 10x over lol… And I’d have way more regrets! Although I am an impulsive person, thankfully none of my impulsive decisions have affected my life negatively in a huge way so I’m lucky! Unique post, great to reflect on!
Oh bless you! Ten times? Haha that’s brilliant! So glad you put a reign on your impulsivity… isn’t it so scary to think about where life could’ve gone?
Hahhaha I agree with your points although im not married but I think I would have broken up with my boyfriend at the moment because I always threatened that I wanted out🤣🤣
I would also be having no friendships, broke, unemployed and purposeless.
Haha this is so funny! I guess we have so many things in common 🙂 Just make sure you keep holding back those impulses, hey!
Oh, I actually failed in that regard. Perhaps I acted impulsively, but I actually went through the same thought process as you regarding my job and did not renew my contract. I’ll go back to pursuing fiction, but we’ll see if that turns out to be a good impulse or a bad one, lol. Anyway, thanks for this post!
In a weird way, I’m kinda happy for you! Life is way to short to be stuck doing things you don’t enjoy. Call it impulsivity if you must, but is that necessarily a bad thing?