EXERCISING YOUR MORAL MUSCLE TO HELP WITH DECISION-MAKING
Our choices each day – at home and at work – matter because of the cumulative effect they have. Much like physical exercise, there are ways to exercise our moral muscle so that it becomes stronger. If exercised every day, building up moral fitness can also help prevent moral injury and its potentially detrimental impact on our mental health.
Follow these tips for building your moral muscle to help with decision-making
Exercising your moral muscle to help with decision-making
Our choices each day – at home and at work – matter because of the cumulative effect they have. Much like physical exercise, there are ways to exercise our moral muscle so that it becomes stronger. If exercised every day, building up moral fitness can also help prevent moral injury and its potentially detrimental impact on our mental health.
Here are four ways to exercise your moral muscle and help with decision-making:
Build a support system of friends and family members around you who are open to the conversation. Nobody can be expected to know exactly what to do in any given situation, but having a support system of peers, friends and family to bounce ideas off and get perspective can be invaluable.
Is there urgency to the problem? If not, setting it aside for a period of time and going for a walk can help with clarity.
All muscles need time to recover, so factor in rest days to help manage mental exhaustion and take time to do something you enjoy.
If all else fails, or you’re not sure who to talk to, make a booking with the Ethics Centre’s helpline Ethi-call and speak with a qualified counsellor to help shape your perspective and find a pathway that’s right for you. A service like Ethi-call helps you become really clear about the facts of the matter and helps shape your perspective so you can see the problem from different angles. It may open up an option that never occurred to you that resolves the situation.
Free, independent helpline Ethi-call offers guidance and support to anyone facing a difficult ethical dilemma or decision. You can book a free, confidential one-hour call
