In my previous post, I wrote about what freedom means to me, i.e. doing what I like doing when I want, and with who I want; yet, I believe true freedom is all about our mental state.
You see, the society we live in brainwashes us to think, and act in compliance with its rules and expectations.
What happens when you think and act out of the box?
In other words, when you follow your intuition without following the crowd!?
From personal experience, you are perceived as weird.
That’s one of the reasons why individuals fear other people’s opinions. They don’t want to be judged.
As a result, people who conform to the norm don’t take action and live a life they feel trapped in.
Have you ever felt like this?
People end up living a life that somebody else wanted for them!
Most individuals don’t like their job, yet, they keep doing it because of what their parents, friends, and society may think of them.
Here are two questions people find asking themselves:
- “What will people think if I quit my permanent job to start my business from scratch?
- What will they think if I don't pursue the career for which I studied - and I don’t like - to do something I love instead”?
When you live a life that you have not chosen but have passively accepted; when you have a routine that you hate; when you do things that have nothing to do with your nature; but above all when you are obsessed with what other people may think of you, can you really feel free?
It all comes down to freeing yourself from the limitations that society has passed on to you and becoming aware of the fears you’ve built in your head over the years.
FREEDOM IS YOUR CHOICE
As with happiness, freedom is also a choice!
How can you begin to free yourself from these invisible chains that keep you trapped and hold you back from living your dream life?
Choose to say NO when you don't like something, even if everyone says YES. Choose to say YES to your gut, even if everyone says NO. Choose to stand for your ideas and beliefs, even if everyone looks down on you because you think outside the box. Choose to get uncomfortable, even though society encourages you to stay safe, in the known, where change doesn’t occur.
Freedom is choosing to be yourself in the era of conformism!
It is choosing to start giving a f*ck of what others think of you. It is choosing to take a leap and take risks instead of having a dull life.
Bottom line: True freedom doesn’t depend on your bank account, the job you do, or the place you live in. True freedom depends on your mental state.
Do you think for yourself or are you conditioned by others?
Do you behave the way you like or do you hang on the lips of others?
Are you living life on your own terms or according to what you have been told is "right"?
FINAL THOUGHTS
Prison does not have to be surrounded by barbed wire or electrical fences and be patrolled by guards, it can be our own mind.
“Freedom and slavery are mental states”. - Mahatma Gandhi
More resources for YOU:
It is much harder to escape that prison which is not visible. Our fears and convictions weave the walls and fences of such a prison, our imagination adds the guards.
I agree with you Mikolaj. Escaping from such a prison that we build day in, day out is not a walk in the park. Yet, I believe that as we build this prison we can also destroy it. We can overcome all the limiting beliefs we come up with in our own minds, the ones who keep us far away from our best selves.
It’s a matter of being aware of what’s going on in our head most of the time.
“Every day, stand guard at the door of your mind, and you alone decide what thoughts and beliefs you let into your life. For they will shape whether you feel rich or poor, cursed or blessed”. — Tony Robbins
Freedom lives inside of each one of us… we “just” need to get rid of all the layers and strings created by society, education, family, and all the “programs” downloaded into the subconscious mind that keeps us prisoners of our own mind.
I would also add that we should learn to be patient.
As a matter of fact, we have been brainwashed by the environment we grew up in since we were children, hence it takes time to reprogram our subconscious minds and get rid of all the layers, strings, and limitations passed on to us by society, education, and family.
Remember: Prison does not have to be surrounded by barbed wire or electrical fences and be patrolled by guards, it can be our own mind.