My brain is happiest when it can visualize a decision tree of primary, secondary, and tertiary consequences.

As a situation changes and evolves, nodes are naturally added or removed along with their probabilities of occurrence and downstream consequences.

The higher the stakes, the more stressed I feel when something unexpected occurs, and the decision tree suddenly becomes incomplete.

The goal in those moments, is not to force the desired outcome – but rather to complete the decision tree so you can be ready to make a rational decision rather than an emotional one.

Life rarely happens as we want it to, but it’s good to have a plan when things go awry.