99 B U I L D I N G A S T R ON G C OMMU N I T Y What would it look like if you had complete freedom? Freedom from anything that held you back or held you down? Most people can’t even allow themselves to think about this because images of self-indulgence, messy change, selfishness, and personal anarchy shove those thoughts right out. We are all for freedom as a unified people in government and society, but when it comes to personal freedom, we are usually quick to give it up. When you look closely at personal freedom and allow yourself to start really thinking about it, you will begin to see that there has been more harm done in the world by individuals living a life of quiet desperation, held back by the things they think they should do or had to do, than by individuals who have had the courage to live freely and do what is in their hearts. We get held back by many things that keep us from being free. We can be held by: • Beliefs that are popular but really don’t sit with us as our truth. We go along with them anyhow because everyone else is. • Desires that give us short term relief from a lack of fulfillment but causes us long term liabilities. Things like impulsive overspending, relationships with lots of drama but very little substance, careers that pay very well but suck the life right out of us – just to name a few. • Obligations that are not congruent with what is most important to us. • Relationships we didn’t know we could move on from - and survive! • Beliefs that limit what we think is possible for us and others. • Fear of the unknown or by knowing too much. • A lack of faith and trust in ourselves or others. • Drama, drama, and more drama. When we choose freedom, we choose to release ourselves from the things that hold us in a place that is not congruent with the person we want to be. You may be saying, “Many of these things I have no choice in.” Likely there is a choice. You just may not be ready for the consequences as you see them today. And that is okay as you get further down your path and gain more clarity about who you are and what you want, you may see a way that you never even considered. Then you will know the time is right.
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