I stand, staring at two paths that stare back. Nothing happens. Nothing happens. Nothing happens until that coin is twisting in the air. The quarter rattles to the floor in clang. I look at the object that determines my path. Tails. And so my walk begins.

Throughout life, I’ve witnessed indecisiveness lead to the shortcomings of many. To counteract a scenario where I can’t decide, I’ve picked a coin to decide for me. Once that coin lands, no matter what side it lands on, you’ll find the choice you want. This applies to almost everything in life. What to eat, what sport to choose, what class to take, which path to take.

In recent years, this literally and metaphorically has been a prevalent method for me. I had trouble deciding what to do with my time. This year, on Fridays, there was no track practice. I could go home, train with my friends on the track, or garden with the Ecology club. At home that week, I sat down and flipped a coin. It landed on heads. That was to go home. At that moment,  I realized I didn’t want to go home. I wanted to be with my friends. I flipped the coin again. It landed on tails. That was to go to Ecology Club. And so I went. On my first day there, it was awkward, I didn’t know anyone. But the next week, I went back. And the next week. And the next week. Each time, I met new people and got closer to them. I was talking to people I never would have met otherwise. It was a good decision.

This was a strategy I didn’t always use, though. Making decisions on your own is how you become you grow. I grew out of my shell of timidness into a shell of confidence. I know this year, I became a better version of myself. I became the fastest I’ve ever been, the most confident & outgoing I’ve ever been, and the happiest I’ve ever been. All it took was to remove indecisiveness & add assertiveness into the equation.