Thursday Thought no.3
Last time I ended on the notion that we should take extreme ownership of our lives. I somewhat just dropped that there on you, so I think it is only fair that I elaborate a little bit.
What do I mean by taking extreme ownership of our lives? Do we not already own our lives? Are the times of serfdom and slavery not long past?
You would be correct, at least for our part of the world. (Did you know that there are an estimated 21 to 46 million slaves at this very moment? I am getting sidetracked, but seriously, look into it, it is horrifying.)
Now, what do I mean by extreme ownership?
First of all, I totally stole this phrase from a TedTalk by Jocko Willink, which I highly recommend to everyone. Second, my point of view on this might differ from what Mr. Willink said as mine is an amalgamation of all other information including this one. Thirdly and finally, taking extreme ownership means claiming responsibility for the things we do and making sure they are our own choice. That is things which are in our power (don’t get mad at the traffic light just yet).
Choices were also the theme of last Thursday’s thought. This time it is not about how we make them, but how we hold them. When I choose to eat fries for lunch, well aware that fatty food upsets my stomach, I brought about my own pain. I don't get to bitch about the fries, fries are by their very nature fatty. The only one responsible here is me. If I go into into an exam woefully unprepared and I end up failing, that is not the exam’s fault. I chose to scroll social media instead of studying. However easy or difficult the exam might have been, I was unprepared. Something I controlled to a large degree.
Suppose you want to meet with a friend you have not talked to in a while. If you cannot meet with him because you played video games instead of studying and thus have no time, that’s your fault.
On a more general level, if I always eat frozen pizza instead of a healthier meal then this is my own choice and my own fault. Complaints about having put on weight are invalid, I made my choice. It's mine. No one else's. Not the pizzas. Not your lecturers for giving too much homework. Not my friends who asked if I want to order Domino’s with him. Mine and no one else's.
The beauty in this is that because everything in your life that is going bad is your own fault, everything that’s going great is also because of you. You make your own choices. You are the captain of your soul. The master of your fate. Embrace your choices. Make them so they matter.
As always, dear reader, take care of yourself.
