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Describe an important decision you have made

IELTS Cue Card Question 79 With Model Answer:

Describe an important decision you have made.

You should say:
  • what it was
  • why you made it and how important it was
  • whether it was a good decision or not
And explain what effect that decision had on you.

[You will have to talk about the topic for one to two minutes. You have one minute to think about what you're going to say. You can make some notes to help you if you wish.]

Model Answer 1:
Smoking is undoubtedly a bad habit and I have given it up for the healthy living of myself and my family around three years ago.

I was a chain smoker and used to smoke around three packets of cigarettes a day. I started smoking from my teenage (I was 17 or 18 at that time) and smoked numerous cigarettes before I quit it in my 32. It was a hefty task for me to give up the attraction of cigarettes. But I came to know that cigarettes contain numerous toxic elements and those create the addiction to the tobacco. Nicotine is the most prominent element contained in cigarettes and the attraction of nicotine is more dangerous than getting addicted to heroin. So, I tried my best to get rid of the addiction.

During my cigarette smoking tenure, I was having several physical disabilities. There were few troubles in my respiratory process. Sometimes I felt pain in chest and it appeared that the chest has become congested. Besides, I lost appetite and could not sleep well at night. Whenever I used to wake up at night, I lit a cigarette stick and tried to sleep after puffing the entire pieces but in vain. Gradually the symptoms started bothering me and became the issue of concern to my family. When consulted the doctor, it came out that the troubles were the detrimental impacts of tobacco use. But I did not trust his words and continued smoking again. The symptoms were severe and finally, I had to give up smoking. It was important for me to give up smoking to live a healthy life.

Certainly, the decision to give up the habit was perfect for me. My health was deteriorating and all my family members were worried about my health. Smoking has numerous negatives impacts and I came to know after studying the bad impacts of smoking on the internet. The passive smokers are more affected than the smokers and I thought that I have damaged the health of my wife and kids when I smoked cigarettes before them inside my home. I felt guilty for that. In line with my illness, they also could have developed some other fatal disease but they are fortunately saved with divine blessings.

I am quite fine now. After giving up smoking, I am feeling fresh, and the respiratory disorders have gone forever. Now I have fresh breathing and I do not need to take any mouth freshener before joining any formal events. Besides, the rooms at my home are free of bizarre smells that produced from the cigarette smoke. Moreover, I am saving money, the remaining money that I used after having three packets of cigarettes daily. My family members, especially my daughters are happy now and my relationship with them has become more intimate. Earlier, I did not come into a close contact with them lest they feel the odours emitted from my body due to smoking, but now I do not have such issues to consider before going to them to have fun with different childish ways.



Model Answer 2:
It was really tough for me to take the decision of my marriage. In fact, living in a patriarchic society, it is really difficult for females to take their own decisions. But I did so and enjoying my life. Though it was hard for me to get rid of the obstacles, now I have got a happy and prosperous life for me. Thank you for your great question that reminds me of the challenging days of my life.

When I got married, I was only a third-year student at a local university here in Singapore. My parents decided to marry me off but I informed them about my affair with a senior student of the same university. They disagreed about the issue with me. I tried to understand them that I need to be happy rather than to be rich. And I would be happy with the person I was in love with. Finally, I had to take my decision and I got married to him by leaving my family. But everything is fine now.

I had to take the decision based on some issues. It was not possible for me to be in love with someone and marry another person. I admit that the person I was in love with belongs to a middle-income family but I was sure that someday he would be able to change his luck. Now he is working at a multinational corporation based in Singapore and has elevated himself to the upper class of the society. On the other side, my parents and relatives had set my marriage with someone richer than the man I loved. They planned to hold the marriage for the betterment of my future. But I denied their request. They tried to force me into the arranged marriage while I was reluctant on the issue. Based on the circumstances, I had to take the decision, and it was extremely important. If I failed to take the decision, I think the way of my life could have been changed.

To be honest, what I did was wrong. But I also had to consider my future. In fact, before taking the decision, I was suffering from mental depression. It was about the honour of my family and on the other side, it was my love. My beloved person was also ready to leave his family for my sake as there were some such situations in his family. Considering the gravity of the situations, we married without the consent of our families. When he took me to his family, initially they were angry and after a few days, everything was fine with them. On the other side, my parents and other relatives were also worried about the issue and they did not expect such a brave decision on my part. But finally, both the families came into negotiation and we are happy now.

The decision brought some negative impacts on both the families. My parents became sick and there were similar situations in his family as well. All of the members became worried and they also started to move for legal procedures. But suddenly the older brother of my husband came forward on behalf of their family while my elder brother dealt the issue from my family. With their cordial assistance, everything went well. But I had to endure some unwanted behaviours and experience some such situations in both the house. But I ignored them considering the better future. At present, I have a happy family and I am glad about it. Both the families share a good bonding. If I would not have taken the decision, everything would not be fine today. So, I often thank myself for the decision.


If you can talk about the cue card topic "Describe an important decision you have made." you should be able to talk about the following IELTS cue cards as well:
  1. Describe a choice you had to make in the past.
  2. Describe a tough decision you had to make.
  3. Talk about your future study plan.
  4. Describe a job you want to do in future.
  5. Describe a plan you have.
  6. Describe something important you need to do soon.
  7. Describe something useful you did lately.
  8. Talk about a decision that took you a long to make.

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