The Choice Point: Towards or Away Moves
An ACT framework for noticing values-aligned vs avoidance behavior in real time
The Choice Point: Towards or Away Moves
An ACT framework for noticing values-aligned vs avoidance behavior in real time
The Choice Point: Towards or Away Moves
An ACT framework for noticing values-aligned vs avoidance behavior in real time
The Choice Point is a foundational tool in Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), created by Joseph Ciarrochi, Ann Bailey, and Russ Harris (Ciarrochi et al., 2014) and developed further by Harris (2019), to help clients notice, in any given moment, whether they are moving toward the life they want or away from it. At every choice point, difficult thoughts, feelings, urges, and situations (called hooks) try to pull you toward avoidance, escape, or behaviors that conflict with your values. ACT skills (called helpers), such as cognitive defusion (stepping back from your thoughts), acceptance, and contact with the present moment, make it more likely you will respond with a values-aligned action. Together these skills build psychological flexibility (the ability to stay open and keep acting on your values even when life is hard). Lower flexibility predicts later mental health problems (Bond et al., 2011), and ACT, which trains it, is supported by meta-analyses across anxiety, depression, substance use, and chronic pain (Gloster et al., 2020). This sheet zooms in on a single moment-to-moment fork; for the fuller four-quadrant grid that maps your whole pattern, use the ACT matrix.
Towards Moves
- Behaviors that move you toward the kind of person you want to be
- Actions that align with your stated values, even when they are difficult
- Approaching rather than avoiding important conversations or tasks
- Engaging with discomfort in the service of something meaningful
- Showing up consistently for the relationships, work, or causes you care about
- Choosing the longer-term reward over short-term relief
Away Moves
- Behaviors that pull you away from what matters most to you
- Avoidance, escape, distraction, or numbing in response to discomfort
- Procrastination, withdrawal, isolation, or shutting down
- Substance use, doom-scrolling, overeating, or compulsive behaviors as escape
- Lashing out, defensive blame, or aggression when triggered
- Short-term relief that reliably leaves you further from your values
Common Hooks (What Pulls You Off Course)
Helpers (ACT Skills at the Choice Point)
Using the Choice Point in Daily Life
- Throughout the day, notice when you feel pulled toward avoidance, escape, or a behavior you tend to regret
- Pause for a breath. Name what is showing up: which thoughts, feelings, urges, or situations are hooking you?
- Ask: what would a towards move look like here? What would matter most to me?
- Pick one ACT skill that fits the moment: defuse from the thought, make room for the feeling, anchor in the present, or reconnect with your values
- Take the smallest possible towards move. The size of the action matters less than the direction
- Notice afterward, with curiosity rather than judgment, what you chose and what it cost or earned you
Key Insight
The Choice Point works by increasing the number of moments in which you notice you have a choice. Nobody chooses perfectly. Awareness alone changes the trajectory. Most away moves happen on autopilot. The pause itself, even before any skill is applied, is the work.
References
- Bond, F. W., Hayes, S. C., Baer, R. A., Carpenter, K. M., Guenole, N., Orcutt, H. K., Waltz, T., & Zettle, R. D. (2011). Preliminary psychometric properties of the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II: A revised measure of psychological inflexibility and experiential avoidance. Behavior Therapy, 42(4), 676-688. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2011.03.007
- Ciarrochi, J., Bailey, A., & Harris, R. (2014). The weight escape: How to stop dieting and start living. Shambhala.
- Gloster, A. T., Walder, N., Levin, M. E., Twohig, M. P., & Karekla, M. (2020). The empirical status of acceptance and commitment therapy: A review of meta-analyses. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 18, 181-192. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2020.09.009
- Harris, R. (2019). ACT made simple: An easy-to-read primer on acceptance and commitment therapy (2nd ed.). New Harbinger.
Related ACT Worksheets
View all ACT →The Six Core Skills of ACT
A simple map of the six skills that build psychological flexibility (the hexaflex)
ACTThe Struggle Switch: Clean and Dirty Discomfort
How fighting a feeling turns pain into suffering, and what to do instead
ACTValues-Based Goals: Turning Values into Action
A committed-action tool for translating what matters into concrete steps
Clinical guides that use this worksheet
Common Questions
What is The Choice Point: Towards or Away Moves?
, 2014) and developed further by Harris (2019), to help clients notice, in any given moment, whether they are moving toward the life they want or away from it.
How do I use The Choice Point: Towards or Away Moves?
Read through this resource to learn key concepts. Share with your therapist or use as a study reference. You can print this sheet or bookmark it for quick access later.
Is The Choice Point: Towards or Away Moves free?
Yes. Like every worksheet on Therapy Resource, it is free to read, print, and download as a PDF, no account required. A Pro subscription adds online filling with saved progress, practice-branded PDF exports, and secure client sharing.
Who is The Choice Point: Towards or Away Moves for?
It is designed for therapists and counselors doing ACT work with clients, and for individuals using it for self-guided practice. Pro members can share it with clients through a private link — no client account needed.
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