All we truly have in this life are choices.

Every decision is a seed—one that will eventually bear fruit, whether good or bad. I understood this early in life, and I’ve always viewed choices like the mechanics of a video game: if you want to become a superior player, you must first understand the rules that you have complete control over.

WHAT YOU FULLY CONTROL

There are core areas of life where you hold absolute authority. These form the “root system” of your personal decision tree:

• Your thoughts & prayers
• Your words
• Your emotions and responses
• Your decisions
• Your friendships and relationships
• The energy you give to others
• What you choose to learn
• Your dreams and aspirations

These determine your identity, your long-term fulfillment, and the person you are becoming.

WHAT YOU PARTIALLY CONTROL

Then there are areas influenced by circumstances, timing, or environment — but still responsive to your choices:

• Your environment (where you live, spend time, build community)
• Your daily inputs (food, drink, health habits)
• Where you learn (school, work, mentorship, home)
• Your family dynamics
• Additional physical, social, and economic variables

These can shift over time, but your awareness and decisions still shape their outcomes.

LIFE AS A TEST OF AWARENESS

Every day is a test — not in a fearful sense, but in a developmental sense. Great leaders approach life with this mindset. The goal isn’t perfection; the goal is to make superior choices that allow you to grow, mature, and bear healthy fruit.

Growth requires courage.
Taking chances requires courage.
Becoming requires courage.

When you take steps of faith — scheduling the meeting, making the call, sharing your gifts publicly — new pathways emerge that were invisible before. Just as Sun Tzu wrote:
“Opportunities multiply as they are seized.”

Very little in life happens overnight. Sustainable success takes years of discipline, patience, and resilience. Not the shallow victories of the short term, but the deeper pursuit of who you are becoming.
Aim to grow a decision tree, not a decision shrub.

Because in the end, your life is the sum of your choices.

BEING FIRM IN YOUR DECISION

“I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live.” — Deuteronomy 30:19

This isn’t just advice — it’s a blueprint. Your choices shape your lineage.

WISDOM PASSED DOWN

Over the years, mentors, parents, and leaders have shared timeless principles that continue to guide me:

1. Do things right the first time.

Finishing things fully eliminates repeating work. Excellence compounds.

2. Be honest and do the right thing.

Integrity preserves you in difficult seasons and builds a foundation others can trust.

3. Ask questions — always.

Curiosity is a superpower. Understanding brings wisdom when applied correctly.

4. Surround yourself with positive people.

Avoid destructive influences. Misery loves company.

5. Persevere through difficult times.

Circumstances shift. How you act in adversity defines your character.

6. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

Thoughtful asking opens doors. People love helping those who are genuinely striving.

7. Volunteer and do good in secret.

Quiet service attracts blessings — and the right people.

8. Be your authentic self.

Learn from great people, but never imitate to the point of losing your identity.

9. Find peace — above all else.

Peace is far more valuable than possessions. It’s the true currency of a stable life.

10. Develop thick skin.

Rejection, doubt, and setbacks are prerequisites for destiny. Trees are pruned to bear better fruit — and pruning hurts.

FINAL THOUGHT

Every choice you make becomes a branch on the tree of your life.
Choose with intention. Choose with purpose. Choose with vision.
Your future is not an accident — it is cultivated decision by decision, season by season.

— Early Boykins III