How do you decide?

The tension was tangible in the gymnasium as the girls lined up on one side and the boys on the other.

As a youngster at school in preparation every year for St. Andrews Day, we learned how to do some Scottish Ceilidh Dances – The Gay Gordons, The Dashing White Sergeant, The Pride of Erin Waltz, The St. Bernards Waltz and a Canadian Barn Dance have all been etched into my memory. Don’t get me wrong, over many years these dances have provided many hours of fun and created wonderful memories.

However, those days of lining up at school were both painful and unforgettable! The boys had to cross the gym floor and pick a girl to dance with.  I have no idea how the girls felt?! All kinds of teenage angst and turmoil were exposed in those fleeting moments. Far reaching, defining decisions effecting your credibility and status amongst friends were determined in those character building seconds. Somehow, I found the courage from somewhere and learned that it was best to get off your marks quickly and race across the gym floor, otherwise the biggest dread of all was that you’d end up with the last pick of the girls. That was risky and always had consequences!

When it comes to decision making, I’ll never forget those lessons from my dance classes – pause, breathe, ponder, choose, do!

How do you decide?