The Decider

I remember back when W told reporters that he was the "decider". He caught all kinds of guff for saying that. It was, many said, the ultimate example of just how arrogant he was. And I was taken aback by this. By the time he got that far into his Presidency I had lost all my faith in his ability to make good decisions. But even I could not deny that his job, if he does it, is deciding. If he makes enough good decisions and if he is lucky enough not to have to make too many decisions that have no clear winner, and if he is lucky enough to guess right most of the time then he, or she, might be a good President. I did not take what W said as a brag or even a statement of something that he was particularly happy about. He was merely stating that was his job..deciding. No one else could do it for him. He was the President. While I have never felt the heavy weight of anything like the decisions a President has to make, as a business owner, a Father, and a husband I have certainly had to make my share of decisions that effected people other than myself. And let's just say there is a huge learning curve to decision making...if your fortunate anyway. Even the clearest thinkers among us make bad decisions that effect others. So when I heard W say those words, "I am the decider", I heard a bit of heaviness. He had been President for some time and it was not an easy time to be the leader of the free world. We all can listen to other's opinions and ask experts and professionals. But when it comes to the things we are responsible for, we are the deciders, for better or worse.