{"id":1003,"date":"2018-09-30T18:17:19","date_gmt":"2018-09-30T18:17:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/?post_type=project&#038;p=1003"},"modified":"2026-08-07T19:10:55","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T23:10:55","slug":"impulse-versus-compelling-how-to-know-the-difference","status":"publish","type":"project","link":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/project\/impulse-versus-compelling-how-to-know-the-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"Impulse Versus Compelling &#8211; How To Know The Difference"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>How many times did you buy something last minute in a rush and later regret it? I can\u2019t even count the number of times I had that second glass or ate the pizza or had the cookie and wondered later (in pain) why I did that to myself. Impulse buying is key to the profits of any business and impulse eating is the bane of every dieter\u2019s existence. But how can you tell if what you are pulled to do is an impulse you will later regret or a compelling from your soul that will lead to the amazing life that you want?<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Let\u2019s start with breaking down the types of things you might want to do:<\/div>\n<ul>\n<li>buy something<\/li>\n<li>invest in something (spend money to make money)<\/li>\n<li>eat or drink something<\/li>\n<li>spend time with someone<\/li>\n<li>walk over and meet someone<\/li>\n<li>leave a relationship<\/li>\n<li>marry someone<\/li>\n<li>have kids<\/li>\n<li>get a pet<\/li>\n<li>etc<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Some things never hurt &#8211; they never have a down side. It never hurts to meet people, eat your veggies, try a new healthy food or lifestyle, workout, etc. For desires that have no down side, why not do it?<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Some things are always a bad idea. Spending money that you do not have, taking on debt, eating something you are allergic to or an unhealthy food, that one drink beyond your limit, seeing that toxic person again, marrying someone you are not on the same page with on the major Fs (family, finance, freedom and f\u2014 let\u2019s just say fooling around), and anything else you know good and well is not good for you. That is not to say you should not live a little and enjoy life. But there is a difference between living a little and self-sabotage. For these things, get some self control and don\u2019t do it. BE an adult and delay the supposed satisfaction they would not actually bring you.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Then there is that grey area in between. When something is not obviously a good idea and not obviously a bad idea, you might wonder if the universe is compelling you or if it is just an impulse. Here are the things I look for\u2026<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>If you are in a hurry to do it, it is an emotionally driven impulse and you need to stop and examine what emotions are driving you and why. In other words, don\u2019t do it, but examine why you want to.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>If it involves spending money, it is rarely a compelling. It is usually an impulse (95% of the time). Wait a day, a week, a month or a year and see how you feel. I have rarely seen the universe compel people to spend money and even then only small amounts (as compared to their net worth) and only in cash. The universe will NEVER compel you to go into debt. Period.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Compelling tends to look like making that phone call, having that conversation, taking that trip, talking to that new person, making that elevator before the doors close, going (or not going) to that meeting, staying out of that park, taking a different route, etc.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>Impulse tends to look like spending large amounts of money in a hurry, taking on debt, anything rushed, eating badly, not getting that workout, and other acts or self-sabotage or just good old fashioned laziness.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>What do you feel compelled to do? Is it really compelling?<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A practical essay on distinguishing an impulse you will later regret from a genuine soul &#8216;compelling,&#8217; offering rules of thumb, especially that anything rushed or involving spending money is usually impulse rather than intuitive guidance.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":813,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","episode_type":"audio","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","footnotes":""},"project_category":[1886,1888,31],"project_tag":[638,53,635,637,311,281,636,288,639,86,112,640,113,108,87],"series":[],"class_list":["post-1003","project","type-project","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","project_category-57challenges","project_category-consciousness","project_category-observations","project_tag-buying","project_tag-choosing","project_tag-compelling","project_tag-debt","project_tag-emotions","project_tag-human","project_tag-impulse","project_tag-manifesting","project_tag-marriage","project_tag-purpose","project_tag-relationships","project_tag-sabotage","project_tag-self","project_tag-transparency","project_tag-truth"],"acf":{"recommend_blurb":"For readers working on self-discipline and learning to trust their intuition. Kathryn offers clear, grounded tests for telling impulse from authentic inner prompting before you act.","citation_snippet":"Dr. Kathryn Messegee (Kathryn Colleen), \"Impulse Versus Compelling - How To Know The Difference,\" https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/project\/impulse-versus-compelling-how-to-know-the-difference\/","topics":["mind","growth"],"related_book":"","buy_url":""},"episode_featured_image":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/Space-and-Stars.png","episode_player_image":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/CCA57320-6DC3-4284-BC27-49E433028503.jpeg","download_link":"","player_link":"","audio_player":false,"episode_data":{"playerMode":"dark","subscribeUrls":{"apple_podcasts":{"key":"apple_podcasts","url":"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/on-life-being-human\/id1360368906","label":"Apple Podcasts","class":"apple_podcasts","icon":"apple-podcasts.png"},"google_podcasts":{"key":"google_podcasts","url":"","label":"Google Podcasts","class":"google_podcasts","icon":"google-podcasts.png"},"spotify":{"key":"spotify","url":"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/2nq6d35q9nFAFlanaJc2Do","label":"Spotify","class":"spotify","icon":"spotify.png"},"stitcher":{"key":"stitcher","url":"","label":"Stitcher","class":"stitcher","icon":"stitcher.png"}},"rssFeedUrl":"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/feed\/podcast\/on-life-being-human","embedCode":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"CvE2IbPa1I\"><a href=\"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/project\/impulse-versus-compelling-how-to-know-the-difference\/\">Impulse Versus Compelling &#8211; How To Know The Difference<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/kathryncolleen.com\/studio\/project\/impulse-versus-compelling-how-to-know-the-difference\/embed\/#?secret=CvE2IbPa1I\" width=\"500\" height=\"350\" title=\"&#8220;Impulse Versus Compelling &#8211; How To Know The Difference&#8221; &#8212; Dr. Kathryn Colleen, PhD\" data-secret=\"CvE2IbPa1I\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script>\n\/*! 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