Self Improvement
Be Inspired to Exercise Your Ultimate Freedom
Your choice to change who you are and where you go
We are constantly making choices. Big choices. Little choices.
Which movie we will watch? Which grocery store we will go to? Will we go to the gym today? Those are just a few of the minor choices we make daily.
Then there are major choices which we think long and hard about. Is this the person I want to marry and have kids with?
This job pays more in the short term, but this other job has more long-term potential, which should I accept?
I have a great job offer 2000 miles away, it will mean leaving my friends and family behind, what shall I do?
It feels like these are the most significant decisions we will ever make. They have the power to be life-altering but they are not the most significant decisions you will ever make.
The most significant decisions you will ever make are who you are, where you are going and who you are becoming.
All too often these are decisions that are made by default and yet they are the only choices where you have 100% freedom to choose.
Why the Ultimate Freedom?
We rarely get to choose all of our circumstances at any given time. However, we always get to choose our response to those circumstances.
“You either get bitter or you get better. It’s that simple. You either take that which has been dealt to you and allow it to make you a better person, or you allow it to tear you down. The choice doesn’t belong to fate, it belongs to you.” Josh Shipp
This represents our ultimate freedom. Our past choices have contributed to our current circumstances. Today’s choices will contribute to tomorrow’s circumstances.
The Role of Inspiration
So you’re asking, “What does inspiration have to do with choice?” I’m glad you asked. Mindset has everything to do with our choices and inspiration influences mindset.
Notice all those good-looking fruits and veggies above. We choose to eat them because we know that doing so is important to us having a healthy body. As a bonus, they taste great.
If it is important to feed your body healthy foods if you want to have a healthy body, have you considered the importance of feeding your mind healthy ideas if you want a healthy mind and spirit? Inspirational ideas are the mental, emotional, and spiritual versions of fruits and vegetables for your mind.
“Desperation drives stupidity. Inspiration drives creativity.” Ada Lloyd
The stress of finding ourselves in what feels like a desperate situation does not place us in a good place to make wise decisions. Perhaps the wisdom of the owl will help.
The flu shot does not guarantee you won’t get the flu, but if you do, it will probably be less severe. Likewise, daily inspiration doesn’t guarantee you will never find yourself in a desperate situation…. but if you are, you will be better prepared to deal with it in a productive way.
Inspiration can come in many forms. I have been collecting inspirational quotes for over 30 years. At a minimum, I read aloud an inspirational quote every morning.
It’s like a vitamin pill for my mind. It is my insurance policy that I am starting the day in a good, upbeat, positive way.
I have clients who read scripture every morning.
Others who read a chapter from Og Mandino, Napoleon Hill, or similar author.
Some clients choose to listen to an audio recording of Les Brown, Gary Vaynerchuk, Brene Brown, or another favorite.
Just like oranges and apples are different, yet they are both healthy choices for our bodies. These sources of inspiration are different, yet they are all healthy choices for our minds.
So How Do You Exercise Your Freedom to choose?
You do it, mindfully.
You have created your unique definition of success so you know your ultimate destination. If you have not yet created your unique definition of success, you can find a road map to do so here.
You frame your choice so you can view it through the filter of that lens.
Will that choice takes you closer to your destination or will it pull you away from that destination?
“The chief cause of failure and unhappiness is trading what we want most for what we want at the moment.” Anonymous
When our decisions are not mindfully focused on our end game, that becomes the inevitable result. Choosing short-term pleasure and creating long-term pain as a result will never be a winning strategy,
So often we focus our goals on tangible things, experiences, or accomplishments. Those things are all great. Seeking them is a perfectly acceptable way of exercising your ultimate freedom — the freedom to choose.
Let me suggest an even greater and more lasting way to exercise that freedom. Choose who you will become. Will you become kinder, more compassionate, more grateful, happier, less fearful, more purposeful, or more courageous? Who do you choose to become?
These are traits of character that can last a lifetime. They will change your life and the life of everyone you come in contact with. To me, these are the choices that represent the highest level of choice and consequently the most powerful way we have of exercising our ultimate freedom.
Just do it!
Bonus Tip
If you liked this article, then you’ll love The 7 Pillars of a Happy & Successful Life. Used as a tool it will give you the clarity to exercise your ultimate freedom to choose wisely clearly focused on your ultimate destination. Get your instant free access when you visit The 7 Pillars here.