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make a similar decision that affected you? Taking the time
to work out these ramifications can reveal a good and true
and constructive path.

This is one of the occasions that applying Empathy will
reward. Empathy can be thought of as the ability to really
consider what it would be like to walk in someone else's
shoes for a moment and the results of this can greatly
inform when weighing options in the decision making
process. Subscribing to and executing empathic thoughts
and deeds is hard work, and can be painful to experience,
but it is still one of the most important tools we have to use
while seeking spiritual growth. The proof of this is that
again, we are designed to be heavily social beings, so it just
follows that the ability to experience each other's thoughts
and feelings must be paramount.

For more complex, life-affecting decisions, I think a two-
step process can be described. First, we use the excellent
tool and previously described concept of Progressive
Thought, and deeply consider all the facts involved. Follow
that with truly analyzing all possible outcomes and
measuring them against the yardstick of the sharing of love
and spiritual growth. If an outcome has positive
implications after all of these consideration, you most
likely have come to a good decision. If the implications
lead to anything overwhelmingly negative for anyone or
anything involved, then you must keep searching.

The offshoot of all this that very often, the correct and good
decision will result in inconvenience, hard work, and
sometimes even personal sacrifice. The good news is that
ultimately it will be more than offset by the, deep, honest,
long-lasting pleasure you will experience by spreading love
and spiritual growth.

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