Philosophical debate: Can an action change your life?

[Broocevelt]

So, I've always had a philosophical question going through my mind for some months or even years, since I'm the type of person who asks himself philosophical questions and that kind of stuff. Would I have been born without World War II? What if Kennedy hadn't been killed? Would I be here right now? What if there hadn't been a dictature in Spain?

Some of you may have heard the science-fiction movies theory which suggest that killing and insignifiant insect in the prehistoric times could lead to drastic changes in the present. That could suggest that the littlest action could lead to a chain of events that by summing up will make noticeable changes appear.

I have always thought about this. What if I stepped out of my bus 2 seconds later? What if I hadn't missed my train? What if I had said something instead of keeping my mouth shut? What could happen if I did that? Something important? Nothing?

This could also be seen as the Butterfly Effect, which also says that the smallest change can make the biggest in a future after a chain of events.

I have a particular thought about this and think 2 ways, but I would like to hear your opinion first. Do you think that the smallest action coming from you could affect your life somehow?

[Remilia Scarlet]

In most cases, I doubt a small difference would make a big impact. If it's something that can influence other people enough, then it could.

[TrialmanAKASoma Cruz]

This reminds me of Ghost Trick

[TKinhonipei]

Very interesting topic... I usually ask questions like this.

What would have happened if I didn't ask my current girlfriend out? How would life be?

I very well believe that the smallest action could affect your life.

All I can say is, I don't regret asking my girlfriend out. She's so wonderful... She's changed my life completely.

[Broocevelt]

This reminds me of Ghost Trick

Well, part of Ghost Trick treats that topic inplicitly, so it's normal that it reminds you of that game

[Dypo deLina]

Yes, I do believe that this is the case. The smallest of actions, however insignificant they may seem, can change your life drastically. Let me explain why I am of that opinion... Speaking of explanations, it's easier to explain through an example:

You are trying to decide whether or not you'll try and swim to that island just across the shores when you're on the beach. You decide to do so. On the island, you meet someone, and decide to start a conversation. It turns out you're extremely similar and you find yourself wanting to keep in touch. And you do.

This someone you've met someday ends up being your husband or wife.

While this example is quite blandly written, that doesn't change the possibility of it occurring.

Which brings us to the matter at hand:

What would have happened if you had decided NOT to swim to that island?

Obviously, you wouldn't have met said person, or at the very least not in the same circumstances. So how would you end up?

That's right; you'd most likely end up not marrying that person at all! So did that decision change anything?

Need you even ask? Hell yes, it did!

[Whirlwind]

Hm..... I believe so, in fact. But it's a scary thought. Just think about it. If your great-great-great-grandmother didn't get on the boat where she met your great-great-great-grandfather, your entire lineage would have never existed.

Dang it, Dypo Ninja'd me.

[Broocevelt]

Just think about it. If your great-great-great-grandmother didn't get on the boat where she met your great-great-great-grandfather, your entire lineage would have never existed.

Indeed, I had one of those thoughts (but only regarding my mother) and it's quite scary when you see the big impact it can have.

If my mother hadn't studied french, she wouldn't have been able to go to France in the same circumstances, and wouldn't probably be able to communicate with my dad (when she met him) the same way, and maybe changing their relationship to just friendship, nothing more. I wouldn't have existed, and probably other changes wouldn't have happened. Apparently unrelated changes I mean.

[Dypo deLina]

Another, loosely related hypothesis: Is it possible that, if a decision has multiple choices, the choice you didn't make branches into a parallel world in which you DID go for the other choice? O_o

[Broocevelt]

Life is a decision at every moment in my opinion, there isn't any precise situation in which you have limited choices on what to do.
I could choose to stand up now, to stop writing this post, to go change the TV channel, to run and jump off the window, go talk to my girlfriend, stop moving my leg compulsively or write a totally different message. Assuming that all of these actions change events, there are infinities of choices though.

I don't think that would be answerable since we don't know of the existence of paralel worlds nor have clues of it.

[Blackrune]

Well, you'll never know what the other choice would have had in store for you.
...
Then again, did you have a choice in the first place, or did your genes+experiences already determine what you'd do?

[Bad Player]

Depends on the choice.

Getting off the bus a second later or earlier? Probably not so much. Which college you go to or which job you take? Definitely.

[Reyson]

Well, say you were a murderer. And you got caught. And put to death. Now, if you hadn't been a complete mindless idiot and shot some kid, you'd be alive.

[Meph]

I think about things like this all the time! How different would my life be if I knew who my father was and my mum and him lived together?

[Broocevelt]

Well, I think it's time for me to develop my opinions on this topic.

I for one, think that the slightest change can affect us in the biggest way, even though it isn't apparent at first. Stepping out of the bus before or after someone for example could change part of your life and you wouldn't even be aware of that.

My theory is more in the psycological aspect than in the physical aspect, but it mixes psycological and time factors. Yes. Psycology is a very important factor in those cases. Think of it as "your brain will react differently to 2 different things, always." Your brain is not going to react the same way if you step out behind someone or before everyone. Let's say that depending on everything you see at the moment, you will have possible set of reactions your brain will chose from.

If you step behind someone, you are automatically going to feel forced to slow down a little bit.
The fact that you slow down will be very important since that will not only change your mood since you are forced to slow down, but also the time on which you will be present at certain places will change, barely 10 seconds or 20 seconds. But in those 20 seconds more things can happen on your way, and also new thoughts can appear in your mind.

Everything you will see and do will have a direct influence on what you are going to do next.

I don't think that the smallest action is the one that will define an event to happen, but I am sure that it will define the possibility that a certain set of events will happen. In other words: The difference between "I missed my train because I walked slowly." and "I may miss my train because I am walking slowly.". Walking slowly doesn't assure you are going to miss your train, but you wouldn't have missed your train if you didn't walk slowly.

Suming up all of this and counting that your behaviour and reactions are going to affect other people's reactions and behaviours in the most slight way (and their behaviour will affect you too), I think that small actions can lead to big changes if those chains are followed to their limit without trying to catch the events up.