When Rousseau said that man is born free but lives in chains, he knew that most of those chains are self-imposed. We feel like we are a slave to so many things…to money; to expectations of family, friends, or bosses (or our perceptions of those expectations); to what we think we need for a “normal” life. Free yourself from those shackles. Do not be bound by doing things for others’ satisfaction. Learn to say no. Say no to material objects, to projects you don’t want, or to people who do not build you up. Surround yourself with positivity and a can-do attitude. You are more free than you think. You just need to act on it.
Tag: freedom
Power, choice, and feelings
I saw this quote on LinkedIn and decided that I wanted to talk about it a little more. I completely agree with this sentiment…
If you allow other people’s words or actions determine if you are happy, sad, mad, or anything in between, you’re in for a roller coaster of emotions in life. You can’t control what they say or do, and if you react to everything, you’re giving them the power to “make” you feel a certain way.
But the truth is, only you get to decide whether or not you feel happy or not. Keep that power for yourself – do not give it away to others who may or may not be thinking about how their actions might affect you physically or psychologically.
Practice what Viktor Frankl (Holocaust survivor, neurologist, psychiatrist, philosopher, and author) called SPR – Stimulus, Pause, Response. He said, “Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” Be free. Choose to be happy or choose to be mad. But make sure it is you who is making that choice, and not someone else choosing for you.
Freedom = Happiness
What most people really want (even if they don’t know it) is freedom. When you see a photo of someone standing by their brand new expensive car with their beautiful husband/wife, and the best attire, it’s not that you necessarily want that. You want the freedom that having that kind of money can buy. You want to be financially free! Freedom brings happiness. Whether it’s the freedom to choose what work you’re going to do or not do, where you want to live, or what your plans are for the day, you want to have the choice (power/freedom) to make that decision completely on your own, without any outside influence. You’ll soon find out that material possessions only buy fleeting happiness. You’ll be happy for a short period of time, but it will not last.
Choosing your attitude
“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” – Viktor Franklin
Don’t play the victim in your life story. Things will always happen that are outside of your control, they won’t go according to how you’d like them to go, but you can always choose your response the what happens. You can always choose your attitude towards any set of circumstances.
Don’t give anybody else power over your feelings and attitude. Nobody can make you “feel” a certain way. Only you have that power…whether you relinquish that power to somebody else is up to you.
Choosing your attitude
“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” – Viktor Franklin
Don’t play the victim in your life story. Things will always happen that are outside of your control, they won’t go according to how you’d like them to go, but you can always choose your response the what happens. You can always choose your attitude towards any set of circumstances.
Don’t give anybody else power over your feelings and attitude. Nobody can make you “feel” a certain way. Only you have that power…whether you relinquish that power to somebody else is up to you.