How and when do you decide to pull the plug?

I decide when either waiting, or more data will not help.
Rather than “pull the plug”, I “pull the trigger”.

This answer is strictly from a cops view and instant decision-making. This happens so many times in this occupation. To shoot or not shoot? To chase or not chase?

Bottomline, I believe all split decisions are based on knowledge and experience.

I survived my career in law enforcement. Angels helped me to make everyday decisions and I thank them for it.

Mostly, it is when events dictate that the time for the decision is right.

I thought you were literally deciding whether or not to pull the plug on a relative or someone in the hospital…I was like WOW this is a bit heavy for just waking up…lol

@deni I needed something deeper this AM. No relatives plugged in right now. :)

Usually something significant has to be learned or uncovered, otherwise we are content to continue the way things are/have always been. I’m sure volumes can be spoken on this topic.

@john65pennington I just want to thank you for being a cop. Way to often your job is thankless and you put yourself in harms way often. THANK YOU

This is a hard question for me because I did have to decide to pull the plug on my son who was tested as brain dead but machines kept him going. It was the hardest thing I’ve ever done but I couldn’t allow him to suffer any longer. I had them stop some meds while I held him. It took 17 hours for him to pass. When it comes down to a decision that is life changing or threatening there comes an inner strength that you did not know existed and you know what to do. At least that was my case.

And you try to make me feel guilty for asking “deep” questions too early in the morning. ;)
When I can’t think of any possible alternative to change and/or improve the current situation.

I usually muddle around for quite a while then wake up in the middle of the night with a blinding flash of the obvious. This is how I decided to leave a toxic job in a family business and resume my career as a librarian.

Lol…..um ,I guess it would be when the mental red flags went up and the sirens went off….Time to rethink the situation….

My family and I are dancing around a crucial decision for my 97 year old mother. We are observing, fretting, gathering accurate information, worrying, talking ourselves to death, consulting, brooding, checking our moral compass, and clearly moving towards the right choice.

We have several weeks; we are using every day; each morning things become clearer (sort of). But we are clearer than we were two weeks ago.

When it feels worse than cramps…or tastes like meatcake.;)

@lucillelucillelucille I didn’t even get to the author before I knew who wrote that.LMAO

@Adirondackwannabe It is one of life’s truths. :)

I almost always go with my gut instinct. I am naturally spontaneous, not to be confused with impulsive.

Once I make a decision I never regret it or have second thoughts.

I am a firm believer in never looking back, and I don’t waste time on regret.

I think over thinking something is more often a problem than hasty decision making.

Too many people get bogged down in the endless details and keep themselves stuck in self imposed limbo land.

Sometimes less thinking is best! :-)

@Coloma-I love the way you think! :))

All the answers you seek are within. That advice has let me make decisions in my life that may not have always been right, but they were right for me right then. I like to make decisions based on all information available and weigh the options of how each decision will impact me and those close to me. Sometimes that has to be done instanteously and sometimes you can mull something over for weeks/months/years and still never make a decision. Intuition, gut reaction, instinct – whatever you want to call it. You know the right call.

Weigh up the pros and cons and if that doesn’t give me a definitive answer… listen to my gut feeling. While I am a pretty logical person, I do believe if something just does not feel right, you shouldn’t go there and if something feels absolutely right, it often is.

When I’ve had enough, pure and simple. I don’t give up easily, but if I do I never look back.