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Category: Thinking Clearly

Freedom From / Freedom To

Published on December 9, 2022

“Freedom in its own right doesn’t take on meaning. It’s like ‘culture’—it’s only when it’s applied to ‘freedom from…’ or ‘freedom to…’”

Daniel Greenwald

It’s a frequently discussed topic: freedom. Many people claim it’s their ultimate goal. But, is it really? Because you could up and quit your job, walk away from all of your responsibilities, say goodbye to all of the relationships in your life, venture into the nearest forest and be completely, “free.”

But, I suspect you won’t be happy for very long.

Which is why, as Daniel outlines so brilliantly above, we have to give “freedom” specific context. Context that allows “freedom” to take on a shape and/or gives it deeper meaning that will lead us to what we’re really after… a long-term, deeply felt, constantly renewing source of joy.

And an excellent way to give freedom context is by specifying what it is *exactly* that you want freedom from and/or what it is you crave the freedom to do. I suspect, if you spend even 15 minutes filling in the blanks as honestly as you can… you might just bring to light a vision of freedom that doesn’t feel so blurry and far-fetched after all.

For example, does “financial freedom” equate to some arbitrary seven digit number that you copy and pasted into your head from somebody else’s mind? Because what you might realize is that what you really want is, “freedom from work that sucks” or “the freedom to work only 20 hours per week (so you can spend the rest of your time doing whatever you want).”

…And you don’t need seven figures to do either one of those now do you?

Freedom Is A Feeling

Published on December 8, 2022

Some of the most liberating feelings in life:

  • Realizing you don’t need anyone’s approval
  • Remembering you are your only competition
  • Releasing yourself from society’s expectations
  • Reclaiming your power from overbearing forces
  • Removing yourself permanently from toxic people/ situations
  • Reminding yourself that you are not ahead or behind—you are right where you need to be (via Hasheem)

And maybe the most liberating thought of them all… maybe freedom isn’t something that is a lifetime away and is actually something that’s far closer than we’ve been trained to believe.

…Because freedom is a feeling; not a seven figure fund.

P.s. I published 57 quotes from The Mountain Is You by Brianna Wiest. They’re incredible.

Reflection Is The Way

Published on December 6, 2022

Remember this: the only time you DON’T grow from what happens in life is when you DON’T reflect.

Mindlessly moving from one experience to the next is what leads to repeated mistakes, cyclical thinking, and stagnation.

Which means, if reflection is in your life… regardless of the hardships, trials, and challenges… you can, at minimum, count on the fact that you’re steady growing with every happening as a result.

And if you can put trust in your growth (which you should), you can also count on the fact that you’ll eventually outgrow your current hardships, trials, and challenges (which is how it works).

…And they won’t, in fact, be an unending source of pain and suffering in your life.

Each of these situations, too, shall pass (in proportion to the quality of your reflections)—believe it.

Remember this, when you say you don’t have time for reflection in your “busy” life.

P.s. Everyone who says you should never look back is wrong.

Self-Imposed Freedom

Published on December 3, 2022

I don’t care what anybody says…

  • Forcing myself to write daily
  • Trapping myself in the gym regularly
  • Locking myself into a monotonous routine
  • Restricting myself to a tight eating window
  • Limiting my access to certain people/ media

…is the ultimate expression of freedom.

Scream Metal

Published on November 20, 2022

I was surprised when I saw Willow performing scream metal on SNL.

And I was also surprised to read how many people were hating on her for it.

Because what I saw was somebody who was smiling, dancing, passionate, absorbed, and fully expressing what appeared to be her authentic self.

Maybe scream metal is what joy looks like for Willow? Why throw hate on that? Maybe if we each could express ourselves as unapologetically as Willow, we’d be screaming with full, raw emotion too.

Assuming this really is Willow’s authentic sense of expression and does give her a sense of joy… imagine her copying and pasting the lifestyle of, say, Kylie Jenner instead.

Not that there’s anything inherently wrong with Kylie Jenner’s lifestyle, but copied and pasted onto Willow’s life? …I’d say it would feel completely backwards.

And what would follow probably wouldn’t be a sense of joy—even though joy is what Kylie (probably) gets from her lifestyle. What would follow would likely be misery, imposter syndrome, and a dulled existence.

And what we need isn’t more dull, copy-pasted humans—what we need are more humans who have come alive and who can unapologetically scream from the rooftops about it.

So, before you copy and paste someone else’s lifestyle onto your own because they appear to be joyful—uncopy and don’t paste. Look within instead. The answers are already there. You just have to give yourself permission to unapologetically express yourself.

Translated loosely: do you and forget the haters.

P.s. In case you missed it, you can read the best of what I posted to MoveMe Quotes last week, here.

“Cell” Phones or Freedom Phones?

Published on November 18, 2022

I posed the following question on Twitter:

Do you think humans were more free BEFORE or AFTER cell phones?

The majority vote was BEFORE.

Which makes my take an unpopular opinion. Here we go:

I think when cell phones restrict freedom is when WE become addicted to THEM.

I don’t think there’s anything inherently freedom-restricting in having a cellphone.

In fact, if we’re disciplined and mindful, I think they’ve unlocked an incredible realm of freedom that was otherwise unavailable to us pre-cellphone.

Today, we’re able to do the same things we were before: nature retreats, family dinner, walk, hike, play outside, twiddle our thumbs, shoot the shit with neighbors, sit in silence… WITH the added option(s) of being able to connect with a friend who live in Malaysia or coach clients who live in Colorado or learn from the Dalai Lama who’s giving a live talk in Tibet.

The freedom is unprecedented.

But, generally speaking, so are the low levels of self-discipline (an observation not a fact).

No one says we must use cell phones; we choose to use them because of the opportunities they provide. Otherwise, why not just ditch the cellphone altogether and backpedal to a more “free” life you once knew before?

Maybe, if we start treating our (possible) addiction to them more seriously and draw more firm boundaries, have some planned media detoxes, and find ways to untangle their intertwined connection to our lives… maybe we’ll discover a type of freedom that far exceeds anything we might remember having before.

But, that’s just my take.

I digress.

P.s. I’d love to hear your thoughts. Feel free to reply on Twitter, LinkedIn, or via email. :)

Self-Fortification

Published on November 17, 2022

Worrying about tomorrow isn’t all that helpful.

Fortifying yourself today, is.

  • Reading might not solve any problems in your life right now…
  • Writing might not make your mind magically more clear today…
  • Meditating might not teach you how to have an overall more calm demeanor after one session…

But, each of those will be a helluva lot more helpful for tomorrow than worrying ever will be.

…And after doing them for weeks? …Months? …Years? …The benefit is undeniable.

So, the next time you find yourself in a moment of worry/ anxiety: try replacing the time you spend playing out worst-case scenarios with self-fortifying activities.

Channel the energy you normally would spend on self-depleting thoughts and funnel it into a self-fortifying task so you can meet your challenges tomorrow when they arrive—better than you are now.

…Better that than trying to meet your challenges in every single mind-numbing moment leading up to them, leaving you more drained and exhausted than there’s any reason for.

P.s. In case you missed it, I had a great conversation with Jeanne Torre and Emily Leahy about going from Burnout to Balanced in life. You can listen to the replay here.