The Last Human Freedom: Choice

“Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” – Victor Frankl

Imprisonment

Viktor Frankl was an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist, as well as a Holocaust survivor. During World War II Frankl, his wife Tilly, and his family were transported to the Auschwitz concentration camp where they were processed. Between 1942 and 1945 he was moved between multiple Nazi camps until he was liberated by the Americans.

Suffering

While suffering imprisonment for years in Nazi concentration camps, Frankl came to the realization that there were mental qualities present within those who were able to survive the many atrocities that were levied against them. He concluded that those who lost hope were less likely to survive than those who maintained a realistic view of their situation, while also maintaining their belief that one day they would be freed from their captivity. Frankl saw in those that maintained hope and a belief that one day they would be free an understanding that their response to the situation was within their control. They understood that their captors could take away their physical freedom, but they could not take away their freedom to choose how they responded to their environment and the situation they were in.

Freedom To Choose

In Frankel book Man’s Search For Meaning he shares his hallmark conclusion that even in the most absurd, painful, and dehumanized situation, life has potential meaning. Based on his own experience and the experiences of others he treated later in his practice, Frankl argued that one cannot avoid suffering, but one can choose how to cope with it, find meaning in it, and move forward with renewed purpose.

The Stimulus Response

Frankl’s conclusions can be applied to ourselves and the situations we are placed in every day. We can evaluate how we choose to respond to difficulties and suffering and determine our response. While we do not experience suffering daily, we do come across difficult and stressful situations in our personal and professional life. How we choose to cope with these situations will determine our mental strength, the depth of our relationships, our professional demeanor, and the quality of the life we lead. Frankl believed that our personal and professional happiness and success could be determined by how we choose to embrace the time that is present between stimulus and our response. If we choose well, we experience personal growth, strengthened relationships and freedom. Should we choose poorly, we will realize regret, discontent and loss.

Just One Moment

It typically takes anywhere from two to seven seconds for information to navigate its way from the emotional processing center of the brain (limbic system and amygdala) to the logical reasoning part of the brain (prefrontal cortex). Therefore, those who can practice pausing before responding to the stimulus in front of us stand the best chance at responding in such a way that positions themselves for a positive outcome. By resisting the need to respond we give ourselves time to allow the rational brain to catch up to the emotional brain. This pause affords us an opportunity to make the best decision.

The Process of Choosing

When presented with information, emotionally charged or not, there are some key questions you can ask yourself that are designed to stimulate the rational brain before responding.

• What is it that I am feeling (specifically name the emotion)?

• What is it that I am thinking?

• What do I want to have happen because of my response?

• Am I doing things to negatively impact the outcome I want?

• What do I need to say or how do I need to react to get the outcome I desire?

Take the Time

By taking the time to slow things down and carefully choose how we respond to the many stimuli around us, we increase the odds of making a good decision. Sometimes, it’s as simple as putting processes in place for how we choose to respond. Processes such as waiting 24 hours to respond to an emotionally charged email or holding back our response in an emotionally charged situation by waiting a few hours until everyone has had a chance to cool down can go a long way toward ensuring things stay civil and relationships are preserved. Most importantly, they can go a long way toward making a decision that is best for you personally and professionally.

Granted, not all situations provide us with the opportunity to manage our response, but every situation does contain some amount of time. However, by practicing how we choose to manage the time between stimulus and response, we improve our decision-making abilities and become better able to respond in a way that supports our personal values and purpose. As we all know from experience, how we choose to respond to any given situation can be the difference between success and failure or satisfaction and regret.

Freedom to choose is the last human right. By not choosing how we respond to the stimulus around us we have knowingly or unknowingly made a choice to give up our last human freedom. When this happens, we lose hope. With the loss of hope comes the loss of happiness and with it goes our success.

Randy Stepp is a Principal with Renaissance Leadership Group. RLG is a full-service business and franchise development company whose purpose is to help business owners realize their dreams of independence and freedom.

Visit Renaissance Leadership Group at www.renaissanceleadershipgroup.com to learn more about business development