Deciding about indecision.
Scene: the Head Office. The Vulcan and the Engineer sit at small desks. The Canter and the Shudoff sit properly erect in straight-backed chairs. Others lounge in comfortable chairs.

Networker: In our last episode, we decided that the main obstacle to guided self-growth is indecision.
Un: And that the key to that gate lies in decison.
Canter: We can't help people that way. They can't decide.
Shudoff: If they don’t know what to decide, they should get somebody to decide for them.
Vulcan: That depends on our interpretation of the expression "guided self-growth."
Owl: Who? Who is guiding?
Un: Self-growth is self-guided. Self-directed.
Shudoff: They should get an expert to tell them what to do.
Vulcan: They will have to choose the expert. That is still their choice.
Hunter: They will have to choose the goal. No Hunter hunts an expert's goal.
Un: Except the expert.
Canter: People can't choose. They don't know where to start.
Engineer: They can start by making a list of the best options.
Canter: Your can't call that choosing. It is just listing.
Vulcan: It is choosing. They choose what to leave off the list.
Whys Guy: And they can ask themselves why they chose the way they did.
Explorer: They can learn about themselves by watching what they do.
Vulcan: They can ask themselves what criteria they are using to choose.
Engineer: They can write the criteria next to the options.
Vulcan: They can decide which criteria are most important.
Shudoff: They should choose the option that best suits what they want.
Un: Or they can choose the option that suits them least. Choose that to throw out.
Canter: They can't get much help out of that unless there are only two options.
Un: Or unless they are willing to do it more than once.
Canter: But suppose they get it down to three options and those are good. Tbey can't decide among options if they are equally good.
Un: Only the Canters can see gloom in the face of three good options. Just flip a coin.
Whys Guys: If people don't want to flip a coin, they can ask themselves why.
Explorer: They may find something in the answer to that question.
Shudoff: They should not flip a coin. They will be coin-guided, not self-guided.
Vulcan: Not at all. They will still have to decide whether the follow the coin.
Canter: Suppose they still can't choose.
Vulcan: They can choose to wait.
Networker: They also choose who only choose to wait.
Engineer: They can stick their list of options on the refrigerator door. It wll spark their thinking.
Hunter: Until they are ready to act.
Organ Music. Voice over: Tune in next month, when we hear the Canter say: After they decide, they will probably realize they can't do it.

Author's Bio: 

Selby Evans was formerly Professor of Psychology at Texas Christian University and an independent consultant in behavioral research. He retired some years ago. Not yet having attained the age of senility, he now provides consulting to the Applied Cognitive Research Lab at Texas Christian University and maintains a website, thinkerer.org, intended to disseminate the findings of applied cognitive research to people interested in self-improvement, self-growth, and self-direction.