Oh dear! Another Saturday post. I’m glad you love me anyway, hehe. My thoughts on power can be read in the comments below and I hope you’ll share your thoughts as well! (Next week I’m going to try and get a wrap-up posted on Thursday in addition to introducing the new topic on Friday, so watch for that). Week two is officially over and we find ourselves moving into week three of the Success Identity Challenge.
Freedom
This has to be one of the most difficult areas of the Success Identity for me in establishing goals. The concept of freedom is so broad and encompassing, and yet creates a very specific, visceral response in me. I feel the need for this more than I can intellectually understand or define it.
I’m going to list a bunch of synonyms (and a few definitions) associated with freedom and I want you to pay attention to how you feel as you read each word/concept. What do they mean to you specifically? Which words/concepts resonate with you most and why?
Freedom. Abandon. Ability to stand alone (unsustained by anything else), to make choices. Absence (of undue restrictions). Autonomy. Candid. Choice. Compass. Decision (determining one’s own actions). Discretion. Elbowroom. Exemption. Flexibility. Free rein. Free speech. Free will. Independence. Liberty. Living by one’s own laws. Openness. Opportunity (to exercise one’s rights, powers, desires, etc). Own accord. Power. Prerogative. Privilege. Range. Release. Run. Self-determination. Self-government. Unrestraint (lack of restrictions and physical restraints). Wide-open spaces.
(ASIDE: It’s so interesting to me that while we crave belonging to a greater whole with people invested in us and we invested in them, we also need the ability to be an individual, to make our own choices, to exercise our rights and power. We need wiggle room. Thus true fulfillment requires a balance of these two, seemingly-conflicting needs.)Freedom spans all aspects of our life including physical, spiritual, emotional and mental. We crave autonomy in the work place and at home. We need it in our families and our relationships.
But what do we do when we don’t have it? Well, I think that’s up to you.
Can you change the situation? Will your goals this week be baby steps towards moving from a job you hate to one you can love (or at least tolerate)? That doesn’t mean quit tomorrow! Think about updating your resume or honing your interview skills. The idea is that your choices lead you towards improving freedom.
If changing a specific situation isn’t an option, can you focus on an aspect of your life where you do have more control and can you exercise greater freedoms in that area? Maybe you say “yes” to everything because you think you have to. Perhaps this week you can focus on setting healthy boundaries and saying “no” to requests that you really don’t want to do.
- Want some inspiration for dealing with tough situations you can’t control? Check out Victor E. Frankl’s Man’s Search for Meaning.
- Need to know where to start on establishing boundaries? Take a look at one of my favs, Boundaries: When to Say Yes and When to Say No.
Writing this post has really helped me to see some concrete goals I can set to increasing my sense of autonomy and freedom. Thank you! You guys rock! What goals will you set? How important is choice in your life?
Plan & Evaluate
Keep it quick. Spend 5 minutes (or less) each day to plan and evaluate your Success Identity choices.
– Mornings: “What will I do? ONE SIMPLE thing I can do within the next 24 hours that will bring me closer to belonging? Power? Freedom?” (Three goals total).
– Evenings: “What did I do? Did my choices enhance, harm or not affect the success identity?”
Keep it simple. We don’t need to leap buildings in a single bound. Small changes, when added together, will lead to big impact.
Extra Help
Look for daily FREEDOM challenges via Twitter (#SuccessID) and Facebook (D.B. Smyth author page).
Good luck this week! I’ll see you next Thursday and I look forward to hearing about all the experiences you’re going to have!
Hugs,
~Deb
What experiences did you have with POWER last week?
What are your thoughts on FREEDOM? What does freedom mean to you? Why is it important?
Success Identity Series
– I Can’t Get No Satisfaction: The Success Identity Challenge
– #SuccessID Challenge: BELONGING
– By the power of Grayskull… I have the POWER
– Fun. Fun. How can we have FUN?
