Yes? No? Maybe?

by Martha Beck

Option One: Do Nothing

If you're feeling intransigently ambivalent, it might pay to formally accept what's already happening—that is, decide not to decide. Here are three ways to take the pressure off yourself to make a choice right this second.

1. Refocus. Stop thinking about the problem by thinking about something else. Read a book. Feed the homeless. Learn French. You'd be amazed what you can do with the energy you once put into fretting. If a decision is absolutely necessary, change will eventually push you off the fence. Tessa, for example, will stay in her relationship until it becomes unbearable or her boyfriend leaves her or they die in a hail of satellite debris, or whatever—whether Tessa continues to agonize or focuses on more interesting pursuits.

2. Delegate. Officially give someone else authority to make the choice, as you might pay a skydiving instructor to push you out of an airplane or an organization expert to trash the objects clogging your home. Warning: When the moment of decision comes, you'll disagree, rationalize, possibly weep. So make sure your adviser is both honorable and utterly ruthless.

3. Research. Indecision may come from an instinctive hunch that there's more you need to know—which means it's time to learn everything you can about the pros and cons of each option. You can continue on this track, however, only as long as you're unearthing genuinely new information. The moment your research becomes reiterative, you'll need to go to Option Two.