I wonder what would have happened if Alice could have stopped the white rabbit, just for a moment, and asked him where it would lead.

Let’s say life is like a decision tree. The choices you make earliest determine on which fork of the tree you will end. Though you will still make many choices later, your earlier choices have negated a myriad of other possible outcomes. That’s what I believe in. No fate. No destiny. Just a series of outcomes influenced by a series of causes and effects.

Now let’s say you go along planning for an particular outcome. You’re making choices in the present not because of the immediate results, but because in the long-term you’ve decided that you ultimately want to land in a particular sector of the tree. Each day that you get closer to that part of the tree. Each decision puts you closer to your chosen outcome.

And assume that suddenly you come to a new fork — a new choice to be made between two branches, and suddenly you realize that this other one looks pretty damn good, too! And what if you see a short-term gain that beats any of the longer-term stuff you’ve planned for, but you can’t see past this short-term gain.

The risk/reward is higher on the one side than the other. The potential climb is greater, but so is the potential fall. Meanwhile, on the other side, the climb is shorter, but the fall is one you know you can survive.

Do you take of the training wheels and work without a net? Or do you continue to perform tricks that get applause from the crowd but never amazement? That tightrope walk from tree to tree in your back yard will impress your friends, but the one across the Grand Canyon will impress the world.

What if Alice asked that white rabbit where it would lead, and he told her “I can’t tell you where it will lead, but let me tell you where it can lead…”