“Freedom is not something that anybody can be given. Freedom is something people take and people are as free as they want to be.”
The 50th Law, Chapter 9, Self-Belief
Freedom is frequently viewed as something that exists outside of us.
We presume that freedom is not ours to claim; instead, it must be granted to us.
Some external force—whether wealth, status, an authoritative figure, or social structures—must bless us with the gift of autonomy.
Without such blessings, we are merely slaves to our environments, forced to bend our will to the rules and conventions of others.
One must only look at the world today to see this notion at play.
More than ever people demand freedom from leaders, institutions, and corporations.
They claim to be slaves to the “machine”, left with no option but to submit to those with more power and authority.
In doing so, these people are conveying that freedom is an element of the human experience that is controlled by external factors.
Whilst, of course, there are times when people are genuinely slaves to their environment—their destinies quite literally dictated by the will of others—we appear to have forgotten just how naturally free we are.
Freedom exists within us all, it is ours for the taking—we must simply reach out and grab it.
This implication of individual sovereignty sounds inspiring, but is it really true?
We must each look honestly at our lives to answer that question.
Are we really controlled by the media, or do we choose to it give so much of our time and energy that it influences our thoughts and emotions?
Are we really slaves to corporations, or do we choose to constantly consume their products?
Are we really victims of unfair treatment, or do we choose to make irrational and reckless decisions that turn us into the stereotypes we so deeply resent?
Do our jobs really make us anxious and depressed, or are we just too lazy and risk-averse to search for more meaning in our lives?
Even if we do find ourselves physically enslaved, are we not still capable of thinking freely, of controlling our thoughts?
Truthfully, we are as free as we choose to be.
Internal forces—our attitude, our mindset, our determination—determine the level of freedom we experience.
External influences are merely a facade, distractions that coerce us into forgetting that freedom can be found only in one place—oneself.
Reader...
Freedom awaits.