The Power of Choice: How One Decision Can Change Everything

By Jodi “Lady J” Watkins, Empowerment Strategist

In life, we often underestimate the power of a single decision. But what if one choice could alter the entire course of your life?

When I was growing up, no one taught me about possibilities. What I was around was all I knew. There was verbal and physical abuse, limiting beliefs, and generations of women who never knew their value. When I look back on my life, I realize now the importance of having adults who empowered me. This is why I do what I do and why I am on a mission to empower youth. Most of our youth don't have adults in their lives who talk about what's possible. Society teaches us to go to school and get good grades. If we don't, we are then told we won't amount to anything. We believe this lie because it's all we know. So what happens? We live a life filled of limitations. We place ourselves inside society's boxes. We make decisions based on what we know. I was an angry child. I didn't know this until I took my anger out on another child when I was a child. Even then, it was never talked about. All I saw was how voicing opinions led to more abuse. I was taught to "shut up and color." When adults did come in and try to mentor me, I was already programmed to think one way. I never knew I could have a life that wasn't filled with heartache, trauma, and pain. This is how I lived my entire life up through adulthood. While I strived to make better choices, my conscious brain couldn't deregulate the subconscious programs that had already been solidified into habits I didn't even know existed. 

It wasn't until I finally got around people who kept pouring into me that I finally realized something needed to change. I also began to see my daughter resembling some of the things I had unintentionally placed in her - limiting beliefs and reactionary choices that made me finally turn the mirror around. 

When you grow up around violence and see how it can lead to mental and physical distress, it becomes something you can become numb to. Being numb means we don't face it. We do what society tells us to do - we "suck it up." What happens when we can no longer suppress the constant traumatic events that keep leaving us running the same circles in life? 

I have landed myself in jail, made decisions that left me with little to no self-respect, and ended up harboring guilt from choices I couldn't change. I even lost out on my dream of playing basketball because I made a choice to go out and party instead of be in tune with the goal at hand. One decision. One moment. One change. 

As a coach, speaker, and woman of faith, I reflect often on the decisions I’ve made—some smart, some rushed, and some purely emotional. I’ve taken risks that didn’t always pay off financially but shaped my character. I’ve said yes when I should’ve said no. I’ve trusted when I should’ve waited. And yet, every decision has become a thread in the beautiful tapestry of my purpose.

One of the biggest and boldest decisions I’ve made was to stop forcing life and instead trust God. That decision changed everything. I understand everyone is in different parts of their journeys and maybe yours hasn't led you to the same place I am in. That's ok. I wasn't there either for most of my life. That choice led me through more hard times, but it has also led me into the light from the wilderness that became my entire life. 

When I chose to stop striving and start surrendering, a new level of peace entered my life. It didn’t mean I stopped making moves—I just began seeking God first. As it says in Proverbs 3:5-6 (NIV):
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.”

That’s not just scripture—it’s my lived experience.

Take real estate investing, for example. Recently, I learned a hard lesson that, at the time, felt like failure. But as God would have it, it was actually redirection. That decision led me to a more holistic and supportive community. It taught me discernment. It reminded me that even when people let us down, God never does.

Every leader has a decision point—whether it's personal, professional, or spiritual. And what I’ve come to learn is that leaders don’t react; they respond. They pause. They pray. They discern.

This is the concept I love to share with the youth because it's something I want them to hear now instead of later. I want them to understand how their choices can change the trajectory of their lives and lives around them one way or the other. I want them to know they don't have to learn the hard way like many of us adults have. They can make the choice now to pay attention to their actions and behavior and they can then choose how they desire to proceed in life. Reactivity is the pitfall to progress. What if we took a step back and assessed the situation rather than reacting all the time. 

Now it's time to make the choice to look at who is in your circle. Are they encouraging you and empowering you or are they belittling you and placing their limiting beliefs on you? Pay attention. It's time to take the blindfold off for good. It all starts right here. You have the power of choice!

James 1:5 (NIV) tells us:
“If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.”

Now, I coach others to lead from that place—not fear or frustration, but faith. Because we aren’t just making decisions for today; we’re building legacy. what legacy do we want to leave behind? Do we want to leave a legacy of more trauma and programming that isn't serving those around us or do we want to change directions and walk in the path that leads to freedom - mentally, physically, spiritually. It's to release ourselves from the shackles we place on ourselves to conform to the rest of society. It's time to stand out. It's time to stop reacting and understand that we are meant to stop the viscious cycles that lead to endless grief and anxiety. 

What’s one decision you’ve made that turned out to be a lesson, a blessing, or maybe even both?

Write it down. Reflect on it. What did it teach you about yourself? About others? About God?

As for me? I’ve decided to keep taking leaps of faith—but only when God says go. I’ve learned that the most powerful, transformative choices come not from a place of pressure, but peace. As it says in Isaiah 30:21 (NIV):
“Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’”

If you’re in a decision-making season, I encourage you to pause and pray before you press forward. Your future—and your freedom—may very well hinge on what you choose next.

Let God lead. Then walk boldly in obedience.

Regardless of what season of life you're in, surround yourself by others who are wiser and can lead you out of the darkness. If they aren't supporting us, they are holding us back. The first step is to support and release ourselves from the mental bondage we have created. Then we can be led to those we are meant to be around. 

I hope this ignites a passion in you to turn things around by starting with that one choice. You have the power to change your life. Will you use it?