Seizing an opportunity at the right time is an ambivalent practical recommendation because it also requires a decision about a choice with unforeseen consequences. It can pave the way to the hoped-for success. But it can also cement a „wrong“ decision. At the same time, any waiting or hesitation is fatal: the opportunity could be irretrievably lost. No matter how one decides, there is usually no going back. Some people shy away from this situation or freeze up and become incapable of action. Others use every opportunity to rationally plan ahead for the right moment in order to be prepared. Still others rely with complete confidence on their gut feeling. However it may be, the right moment brings a touch of the absolute in Kierkegaard’s sense. A moment of seduction, of temptation, risky, in some cases even frightening, or quite the opposite, exhilarating. A moment of almost endless possibilities, which, when they arise, are already dwindling; an existential urge to take action, perhaps also an existential blockage of being able to take action.

Literature:

Søren Kierkegaard, Fear and Trembling
Konrad Liessmann, 3rd lecture in the series “Anti-Academic Philosophizing”, given on March 22, 2012 at the University of Vienna

Further Reading:

Committed to the Moment (Time Subjects)
Søren Kierkegaard (Time Thinkers)

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