Freedom! But from and for what?

January 22nd, 2013 by Agent Kevin Miller

freedom

I’m giving an answer at the bottom, and I believe it will give some clarity to an area which gets a lot of attention, but very little action, due to a very vague notion of what freedom really is and how it tangibly relates to us.

Scroll right to the bottom if you desire to see what I’ve offered, and…if you agree. If you’re not sure you agree, read what’s in between here and there, then…comment. Let me (and all the readers) hear your take.

At our core, we want freedom.

free·dom
- the absence of constraint in choice or action

As children…freedom is what we are born desiring. As we age we often find ourselves desiring levels of captivity and imprisonment, but this is merely a result of pains and fears we’ve incurred. It doesn’t thwart the truth of our soul’s natural inclination and desire for…freedom. Anyone who has had children or spent time around them must admit, we were born desiring and EXPECTING freedom. 90% of my small children’s crying is a direct result of constraint against their choice or action. The other 10% is from a real or imagined physical pain.

This truth plays out in every epic story and movie. Good vs Evil…fighting for freedom from things that constrain or threaten to constrain us.

Today, are you free?

The answer is no. We’d like to think so, as we live in a ‘free’ culture and assume freedom of choice. Which by far-and-large is in fact true, though there are always exceptions. I found out when I bought land that I’m not in fact…free. I can’t build anything I want. Anything erected must pass stringent code. This pissed my off greatly. Not that I was going to build a house out of dead bodies or anything (we went with straw bales instead, much easier to get and better insulation), but it just angered me to not be…free. Free to do as I chose.

But most of our lack of freedom is self-imposed. We bought the stuff we now owe on, we hired ourselves out to the company, we initially agreed to the lifestyle…

Or wait. Was it mostly self-imposed?

As a young kid, were you ‘free’ not to go to college? In growing up in homes of traditionally employed people working at things they care nothing about other than making a buck, were you ‘free’ to pursue a passion or work at something you truly cared about? If you were raised in a city and neighborhood and all your experience is within there, were you free to seek out new places and different lifestyles?

You can debate this, but in truth…it’s relevant to contemplate the fact that you have not been free to partake of and participate in many, many things. Things you may long for today, consciously or subconsciously.

Examples: On a soft note, my children have not been free to eat meat aside from fish, simply because those who provide their food do not buy it. They’ve not been free to watch TV and be ingrained in the mainstream media their friends enjoy, cause their parents don’t pipe it into the house. Many would say they’re deprived! On a hard note, there are children right here in our county who are not free to be safe from abuse, whether being on the receiving end, or just having to witness it and have the acceptance and reality of it hardwired into their psyche. Their freedoms in security and safety and peace have been taken from them.

We could write ad nauseum in this vein of what freedoms we were constrained from us in our upbringings and past. This is a worthy exercise for every individual.

But I believe it will prove out: We were born and bred FOR freedom. But we weren’t born INTO freedom. Not entirely. It’s impossible.

Today you’re where you are, much as a result of a path you were set out on with much not of your choosing. Again, not entirely.

So the question is, what do you want and need freedom from? What choices would you make or actions would you take if you were in fact…free? Free from the realities of your past and your present?

What you come out with will then provide the answer to the ‘for’ aspect of freedom. Freedom from ______, for ______.

My favorite term for what we truly want freedom ‘for’ is…our convictions:

con·vic·tion
- a strong persuasion or belief
- a fixed or firmly held belief, opinion, etc.

Freedom to just be lazy and unproductive and needless doesn’t last long and generally leads to moral decay. In our matured desires for freedom we desire meaning and purpose and to be needed.

This then provides us with the headline categories for our answers of what we want:

Freedom FROM what constrains us (some chosen, some forced), FOR our convictions.

What then constrains you?

What are your convictions?

Thanks for your feedback and counsel.

If you’d rather hear the show where I expanded on this topic:Right-click to download / Listen or subscribe via iTunes

  • Wendy Staas

    What Constrains me? Well, is it odd to say myself? I feel like my dream and my passion to to be a free agent constrains me. . . financially a bit. Why? Because we have tightened the financial ropes so that we can spend elsewhere to continue to walk where we are feeling led. Sometimes I feel constrained in my pursuit to own a successful company — instead of feeling the freedom to play with my daughter I am constrained to working on blogging, article writing and scheduling podcasts. . . so, is it safe to say that in our pursuit for freedom to do what we want when it comes to pursuing our passion — that there are constraints involved until we get there?????

    What is my conviction? my conviction is my passion. My passion to assure every woman knows her rights. . . feeling empowered and encouraged while pregnant, giving birth and being a mother. to know that her instincts are right. . . so, just as I said what at times feels like constraints — fuels me toward my conviction. . . I get to do what lights my fire while home with my daughter. I eventually want to get it to the point where I can be anywhere in the United States and world and it won’t matter because my business can be run from anywhere. . . that is my conviction — to show my daughter that life can be what she wants to be — and to help her become exactly what the Lord designed her to be. . . I refuse to stop until it is achieved.

    So, in the end — when the growing pains of starting a business starts to fade away — the constraints start to lift — my conviction is then even stronger and is the fuel for the success of the business I grew. . . It just takes time.

    • http://www.freeagentacademy.com Kevin Miller

      Thanks for sharing Wendy, as always. In this context, the aspect of ‘constraints’ is against what we believe to be best. Meaning, if I have constraints on my diet in order to achieve a desired result…that’s ‘positive’ constraint and outside the parameters of what we’re looking at here. So on that note, I hear you.

  • Michael Peters

    I’m not 100% sure this is correct but I would say I desire the freedom of the constraints of not having money for the ability to travel and experience cultures from the around the world, to provide a more stable environment for my family, and to be more at peace with myself to not constantly worry about where we will come up with the money for the next small thing that breaks around the house.

    Although I implement a general savings plan along the line of the richest man in babylon it seems that I keep falling behind in long term savings and wealth growth. I truly believe in helping others and it pains me that I am having such a hard time just taking care of my household. I don’t feel I am materialistic and don’t need to have the latest and greatest gadget, car, etc.. If whatever device is working and gets the job done I see no need falling into the trap of constantly having to have the newest of everything. I just want more stability and to be able to provide more experiences to my kids which I unfortunately never had the opportunity to as a child.

    • http://www.freeagentacademy.com Kevin Miller

      So what’s constraining you from making more income?

      • Michael Peters

        I would say a couple things combined is what has constrained me. I would say number one is fear and the second is guessing what I should be doing.

        I started some college courses but we see a lot of people with degrees without a job and I quite frankly am tired of a j-o-b.

        So this kind of puts a lot of it on fear… Fear of costing my family more in a failed attempt. I am getting over this and realizing a lot of this is supericial because if I let fear win. I will still be in the same spot I have been for the past couple years.
        I am seeing more and more people get plowed under by companies these days and I am saying my fear is going more towards the I have to do something or be a casualty myself.
        In a big way I am what was constraining me to make more income. I also must admit that maybe my faith in myself has been a big reason too.

        • http://www.freeagentacademy.com Kevin Miller

          Thanks so much for sharing Michael. Hey, you’re doing the work to deal with this as you persever through FAA groups. The more clarity you have on the table, the more we can address it.

  • http://seekoutwisdom.blogspot.com Joseph Iliff of SeekOutWisdom

    I heard columnist George Will describe freedom as the absence of restraint imposed by others, but that a successful life under freedom requires restraint imposed upon yourself. I’ve heard others describe freedom as one side of a coin, with responsibility being the other side. In comic books, Spider-man taught us all that with power comes responsibility

    All of these comments advocate the idea that liberty can not be separated duty.

    Convictions are not beliefs we hold, but rather beliefs that hold us. Like when Martin Luther was challenged for his beliefs and responded that he would stand on them because he could go no where else. One’s convictions are those beliefs that are so strong, there is simply no where else to go, like a convict trapped within a prison.

    What constrains me? Fear.

    What are my convictions? That those who seek wisdom increase their influence and improve their relationships. And that I can help people find wisdom.

    • http://www.freeagentacademy.com Kevin Miller

      Great line Joseph, “freedom as the absence of restraint imposed by others, but that a successful life under freedom requires restraint imposed upon yourself.”

  • TheDavidCreel

    1. I desire freedom from the not-so-typical 8-5. I would like to have
    residual income coming in and more time freedom. To work when I chose,
    and from anywhere I could get an internet connection. I also desire
    freedom from my current industry that is testing petrochemicals, and not
    having my clothes smell terrible when I get off.
    2.
    I desire freedom of time for more family time, and to have the ability
    to have limitless earning potential so that my family will be cared for
    and my wife can quit her current job to stay home with our son, Max.

    • http://www.freeagentacademy.com Kevin Miller

      Beauty David. Give some thought to what ‘constrains’ your desires. Get em’ on the table so you can deal with them…and get help!

  • https://www.facebook.com/pages/MacGowan-Metals/206608859401595 Jason Smith

    What constrains me?
    As I have removed as many of the outside factors of constraint from my life, I find myself left with only myself as a constraint. Is it fear? Lack of purpose? Lack of focus? Mostly it’s lack of action. Lack of energy to just get out there and do it.

    What are my convictions?
    That I be available to those who need me. I’m the “go to” guy for so many of my friends and family. I love being able to help them find solutions. A “regular” job does not allow for that. And even owning my own job doesn’t exactly mean that I’m free to do so. Action must happen, both in the job, and in the helping.

    • http://www.freeagentacademy.com Kevin Miller

      Thanks for this Jason. In the aspect of you constraining you…check if ‘belief’ or ‘lack of experience’ comes in to play. That’s not all on you. It’s up to you to overcome it, but have some grace for yourself as well…

      • Jason Smith

        Well there is a definite lack of experience. Idont know the marketing side. I have lots of ideas on that, I keep getting them confirmed, but I’m still not sure how to implement them.

  • http://www.facebook.com/Velexia Celia Triplett

    Would it be considered strange that I was not ‘free’ to avoid entrepreneurship? It was something I spent most of my childhood growing up in. I spent years and years of my teen/adult life saying NO NO NO to starting up a business because I hated all the bad things that can happen. But now I am starting a business. … Maybe I just had to know I was free to say no first … or perhaps I am just susceptible to the idea of starting a small business having been around so many family members who have done it. A very psychological debate. Nature vs nurture vs freedom of choice.

    I don’t think it’s an easy or simple thing to debate.

    I would also argue that while we are products of situations we grew up in, at a certain point we have a choice to either let that continue to determine our lives forever (playing victim) or decide to make something better happen.

    I love Zig Ziglar’s story of the two brothers who grew up with an alcoholic father. The first son grew up to also become an alcoholic. He said “With a father like that, what else could I have done?” The other grew up swearing off alcohol and living a clean life with his family and children. He also said “With a father like that, what else could I have done?”

    We have choice. It’s a question of whether we’re willing to make the sacrifices to ‘break away’ from the set path of our upbringing.

  • http://twitter.com/esggraphics Eric Gale

    What constrains me?
    My mind and thinking. I need to live out Romans 12:2 ” Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

    What are my convictions?
    I need to use my skills, abilities, and love of learning to help others overcome their Goliaths. I truly believe that Ephesians 6:12 “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and
    against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

    I love what Morpheus says to Neo in the Matrix “Like everyone else you were born into bondage, born into a prison that you cannot smell or taste or touch. A prison for your mind….” http://youtu.be/3Mu_8w6db5M?t=1m5s

  • http://twitter.com/RichAvery Rich Avery

    What has constrained me at times is lack of clarity and focus. I’ve been challenged by Paul J. Meyer who said “If you are not making the progress you would like to make and are capable of making, it is simply because your goals are not clearly defined.”

  • http://www.freeagentacademy.com Kevin Miller

    Today’s show went over this blog and expounded. It’s posted here at the bottom of the blog. I read most of your comments and discussed them. Thank you all, so, so much.

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