We don't make good choices. We find them. By definition, visionary decisions see beyond our prevailing assumptions. The innovative colleague whose vision penetrates our assumptions about how things must be done. The enlightened activist who sees the distant consequences of our current actions. The recovering addict who sees the freedom beyond the attachment. The wise person who takes a breath before lashing out. And in fact there is something breathtaking about all visionary decisions. They reveal a stunning landscape that had been hidden to us. Hidden behind what we were sure was true. So, visionary decisions are more a matter of letting go than of creating. They are revealed rather than constructed. Pause for even one breath in the heat of the moment, and wisdom bubbles closer to the surface. We don't figure wisdom out - it's just there. It stands in relief as all unnecessary crap is swept away. The superiority of the wiser perspective is palpable. Even if we don't like it, we know it is the better choice - and can probably explain why it is. But the explanation comes after the knowing. And so, the hallmark of the wise choice is not passion, but peace. Not the frenzy of an opinion validated, but the peace of integrity satisfied. This is also why that breath taken before a rash action can be the difference between success and disaster. Because wisdom not only brings peace. It also emerges from it. We see most clearly when we're happy. The bottom line is that all our best, most farsighted, decisions arise from a contented heart. Of course, our heart is most at ease when we are choosing wisely... but, well, we have to start somewhere! How do we slip into this virtuous cycle of an ever better, ever happier way of being? Softening our opinions about how things "should" be brings a degree of calm. But really embracing the way things are reveals possibilities we couldn't have imagined. Our task then is not to frantically pursue and defend the choices we think are right and wrong. Our task is to patiently cultivate a heart at ease. Then listen.