Indecision Is the Real Failure: Cicero’s Rule for Taking Action

“More is lost by indecision than wrong decision. Indecision is the thief of opportunity.” — Marcus Tullius Cicero

Most people fear making the wrong move. So they pause. They collect more information. They ask one more person. They wait for a clearer sign. And without noticing, they start paying a hidden price—time, momentum, confidence, and the chance that was available only in that moment.

Cicero’s line doesn’t glorify reckless choices. It points to something sharper: even a wrong decision can teach, correct, and redirect you. Indecision, on the other hand, quietly removes the option to act at all.

Why Wrong Decisions Hurt Less Than No Decisions

A wrong decision is painful, but it is also specific. It creates feedback. You can measure what happened, learn what failed, and adjust. It puts you in motion—and motion creates clarity.

Indecision feels safer because nothing “bad” has happened yet. But nothing good happens either. You stay stuck in planning mode, and the situation evolves without you. Competitors move. Deadlines pass. People lose interest. Your own energy drops.

When you finally decide, you are often choosing from weaker options than you had earlier.

Indecision Steals Opportunity in Small Ways

Opportunity doesn’t always arrive like a dramatic moment. Most opportunities are quiet and time-sensitive:

• A conversation you should initiate
• A skill you should start learning
• A proposal you should send
• A health habit you should begin
• A creative idea you should publish

Indecision steals these not by force, but by delay. A day becomes a week. A week becomes months. The “right time” never shows up, because it was never a real date—it was a comforting story.

The Psychology Behind Overthinking

Indecision often comes from the need to avoid regret. We imagine that if we wait long enough, we’ll find the perfect option—one that guarantees success and removes risk.

But life doesn’t work like that. More information can help, but beyond a point it becomes a way to hide from responsibility. Overthinking is often fear wearing the mask of intelligence.

The uncomfortable truth is this: most progress requires imperfect action.

A Simple Way to Choose Faster

If you want to escape indecision, reduce the decision’s “weight.” Try this:

• Decide in drafts. Choose a direction for 7 days, not forever.
• Set a deadline. If it’s not decided by Friday, the default option wins.
• Ask one question: “Will this choice be reversible?” If yes, decide quickly.
• Move to the next step. Action creates data. Data creates confidence.

The goal isn’t to be right every time. The goal is to keep moving.

Choose Motion Over Perfection

Cicero’s quote is a reminder that the biggest loss isn’t failure—it’s the life you don’t live because you kept waiting. Opportunities rarely stay parked at your door. They pass through.

A wrong decision can be corrected. Indecision cannot refund the time it took from you.

So choose. Start. Adjust on the way.