Inspiration and Life

Gain More Freedom in Your Life

Six fundamentals to live a better life

Do you wish you had more freedom? Freedom to do more with your time. Freedom to enjoy everyday life. Freedom to become more as a person.

Who doesn’t want the freedom to do as you please? Why not live a life free from the bonds that tie so many down. What is it that steals this freedom? Let’s discuss!

The root of the issue

Have you ever heard the old saying:

“What you possess, possesses you.”

Some people phrase it like this:

“What you own, owns you.”

Each of these sayings is true, are they not? While what we possess can implicate broader ramifications than what we own, these pithy sayings show us the root of losing much of our freedom in modern society.

Our possessions, such as intelligence and beliefs, define who we are, while who we are becoming contains the opportunity to increase our freedom. This freedom comes from growth and maturity. But what about the other type of possessions? Those things we purchase and own? It is in them that we lose much of our freedom today.

You can think of it like this:

“The more you own, the more you are owned.”

What you own demands time and attention. Your time and attention cost a piece of your life. This is especially true of larger items such as homes, boats, and cars. And yes, it is also true of your thoughts and behaviors. Either you control them, or they control you.

To regain some of your lost freedom, let’s visit some fundamentals you can begin working on immediately. There is no time to waste if you want more freedom!

Six important fundamentals for regaining freedom lie in:

• Human nature
• Patience
• Discipline
• Delayed gratification
• Peace
• Attitude

We will look at these fundamentals with wisdom from others that I hope will inspire you to take your life back and enjoy the resulting freedom.

Human Nature

“It is human nature to seek instant gratification and empty pleasures even when we know it is wrong.” Anonymous

Most of us go after what we want rather than hold off in today’s society. This is true for both physical pleasures and material things. You may have all the money you want and feel like you deserve whatever you wish. Yet that is only egotism and greed. This “must-have it now” mentality is rooted mainly in immaturity and selfishness. To deny yourself is taking time, not making rash decisions, and being mature.

Discipline

“We must all suffer from one of two pains: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. The difference is discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tons.” Jim Rohn (1930–2009)

Learning to be disciplined is key to not reaping regret later in life. Skip that purchase or get rid of something that consumes too much of your time. It is your choice to live a disciplined or undisciplined life. An undisciplined life is unruly and causes you to lose freedom to your wanton desires. That is no way to live if you are mature and responsible.

“Rule your mind, or it will rule you.” Horace (65–8 BC)

Discipline brings order to life. Otherwise, the chaos created by that undisciplined, unruly mind will rule you, stealing your freedom.

Patience

“Patience is where we realize that to rush something is to compromise it to its own destruction. Maturity is to realize that the most effective way to stop the destruction is by beginning to develop patience. And the first place that we need to do that is with ourselves.” Craig D. Lounsbrough (1959-present)

Patience requires thoughtfulness and practice. Its opposite, impatience, is carelessness and immaturity. Better to be mature and patient than immature and impatient. Never has a truer statement been made than:

“All good things come to those who wait.” Lady Mary Montgomerie Currie (1943–1905)

The willingness to be patient makes those good things much better when they come. For many of us, they come in our relationships, spouses, careers, accomplishments at work and in life, owning a home, and a hundred other things. Think about some of the things in your life that are so much better because you waited.

Delaying gratification

“Delaying gratification is a process of scheduling the pain and pleasure of life in such a way as to enhance the pleasure by meeting and experiencing the pain first and getting it over with. It is the only decent way to live.” M. Scott Peck (1936–2005)

There is so much truth in the above quote. To obtain pleasure often requires enduring pain first. The pain of working out leads to health and longer life. The pain of denying yourself the pleasure of unhealthy foods adds to your health and vitality. The pain my wife went through during childbirth gave us a beautiful daughter. Think about some of the things you suffered through that improved your life.

“The obsession with instant gratification blinds us from our long-term potential.” Mike Dooley (1961-present)

We inherently know that instant gratification blinds us to what the future could hold, including the freedom it steals. Why do we seek it? It is often because of innate greed. Every person is born greedy and selfish, yet greed can only control those who give it free rein.

“There is nothing more exhilarating than the instant gratification of self-control.” David M. Weinberg (1947-present)

The more you practice self-control, the more you will experience this gratification. Why not give it a try?

Peace

The more you own, the less peace you experience. Peace and freedom go hand in hand. While it is possible to experience peace without freedom, it is practically impossible to experience freedom without peace.

Why allow “things” to steal your peace and freedom when you can make a different choice?

“Freedom from desire leads to inner peace.” Lao Tsu (c. 4th century BC)

Much of the lack of peace in this age comes from the pace of the world and the demands we place on ourselves. Behind these demands and the rapid pace are desire and fear. Fear of losing a job, losing a relationship, losing money, losing an experience, losing time, and many other things. Each of these is something we desire, hence the fear of potential loss.

Learn to quit clinging so tightly to some of your desires. As you let them go and develop more faith, you will experience less fear and more peace and freedom.

Attitude

“We are talking about an attitude. Be able to give up something now to get something later.” Joe Hill (1972-present)

Having the right attitude helps in every situation. If you have a can-do attitude, you can develop the willpower to overcome short-sighted, impatient thinking.

Why not take a cue from nature, and develop a similar attitude?

“Nature never rushes, yet everything gets done.” Donald L. Hicks (1975-present)

There is no need to rush to buy something, especially when it costs you some freedom. Imagine what you can do with more time on hand, even if it is simply enjoying life! Rather than rush through life, take it at a slow, steady pace and enjoy it!

Final thoughts

Did you notice the themes running through the fundamentals of gaining more freedom in life? Simply be more mature, slow down, don’t make rash decisions, and learn the lesson of delayed gratification.

Now that isn’t so hard, is it?! If you take one thing away from this article, I hope you will never forget:

“The less you own, the less you are owned!”

I believe you have what it takes to maintain and gain more freedom in your life. Do you?

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Bill Abbate Leadership Writer and Editor in ILLUMINATION

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