As I’m waiting in line at the rooftop club for entry, I’m quite nervous. I mean, I’m wearing deodorant so not worried about a nervous sweat, but rolling by yourself is always nerve-wracking. What if people judge me thinking I’m a loser and I don’t have any friends. Why do I feel like if I’m not with people, I’ll look like a loner? The people in front of me were 3 tough-looking people. Usually, I’m not into picking up dudes at the club but I guess at the moment, I felt desperate to make some friends. They looked intimidating but I know not to have bias and treat everyone the same. So when one of them started talking to me, instead of reacting timidly, I responded very happily and we got into a small conversation. This lead the other 2 to join and next thing ya know, it felt like I was part of the click. All my worries about being a loner and being judged suddenly disappeared. They had respect for me and I for them. One beauty of being by yourself, you are much more approachable and it’s a lot easier to make friends. But something about being with them, I felt like they had my back now, they treated me like I’m one of them. As we approached the entrance, one of them went in. The security guard, for some reason, being a dick, pins the guy against the wall. Everything happened so quickly, next thing you know, the guys along with us jump the security guard. They are beating the shit out of him. At this point, do I join them and beat him up too? The logical brain aka cortex says: I am now an assistant to an assault or a witness to this crime. They will always know that I was there since they interacted with me. Cameras are everywhere as well. I guess there is also evidence that I just met them as well. However, my reptilian brain says: They had my back so now I have to have their back as well, even though I don’t believe in violence. However, free will can be lost when you are disconnected from your values and follow the trend. I jumped in attacking the poor security guard. Bad place bad time? Tell me about it. 

To jab or not to jab

It’s really hard to find your authentic self when we are always in bubbles. Humans have an urge to belong to a tribe. Society as a whole is a huge tribe with subtle rules in place, telling you how you should behave and live your life. However, I think most people sort of understand this and want to search for their own free will/identity and leave their unique footprint in the world. Unfortunately, this can be a double-edged sword because this yearning by humans can also be exploited. I love when people question instructions before following things blindly. It’s funny, I usually connect more with people like this. However, there are groups that get formed like the anti-vaxxers who claim they are rebels against the system. Like they will claim “people that take the vaccine are sheep”. However, what these people don’t realize is they are also sheep to a smaller movement, the anti-vaxxers movement. They criticize the people that get vaccinated because they claim that the vaccinators haven’t done any research and they are just sheep following anything the system wants. Part of this is true, there are many people that simply take the vaccine without doing research because they believe in the experts. However, there are also plenty of vaccinated people that have done their due diligence before taking the jab. So if I ask these so-called anti-vaxers if they’ve done any research on their own to also prove if the opposite is true, how many can legitimately say they have? Just cause some people took the vaccine and didn’t do the research, it doesn’t mean that you not doing any research and not taking the vaccine is justifiable. I think if you actually looked at the numbers, research, etc, it’s quite obvious that you need to take the vaccine. However, anti-vaxxers here will see this as an opportunity to feel different from the ones who are standing up against the system. However, vaccine or no vaccine is too binary. Don’t use this as an opportunity to be different. Life will show you many opportunities for thinking out of the box. In fact, you may even be the first to do something innovative or identify as someone who changed the game. This I think is the originality that we all look for. Don’t mask it with a stupid thing like not taking the vaccine. I’m all for free-thinking, but create a pro/con table and come down to all the facts and you will see that taking the vaccine is more important to you, your loved ones, your life(opportunity cost), and others. 

To the folks thinking they are puppetmasters

I frown at the masterminds that are creating these so-called groups via conspiracy theories exploiting the nice desire of humans’ desire for free will into manipulating them to do disastrous behavior. The creators themselves may have a desire to make an impact in the world. But is there any justice in their actions when many innocents are losing lives? Another example: Let’s say ‘X’ works for a tech company making great money with great perks. However, X feels like corporate America is out to get him so he decides to create a Union. X organizes employees to stand up against the company. I don’t understand this either. Like people used to make unions because of reasons like poor work hours, low pay, can’t feed their family, etc. But we live in a society where there are so many jobs to choose from. Yet X joins a company and decides to try to take it down? Imagine the moral damage it does to other employees. Also how many company hours are wasted here. What about the poor guy ‘Y’ that was just trying to establish his dream by creating a company. Y went against all odds and built something based on his vision. Y took many risks and this X comes down and tries to take it down. I think it is important to really take a step back and evaluate how your actions will affect others. 

You act with free will but what kind of path will you lead?

Anyhow my point is, that finding your authentic self is hard especially when there are so many systems in place to manipulate you. Once we can tap into our free will, we become powerful creatures. We all have a desire to make an impact and be different What will your legacy be? Are you just going to follow a group and be happy or will you actually find your own purpose? Does it matter to you what kind of impact it makes on others? Will innocents be oppressed? Is it fair? We as humans, if we have the privilege to make a difference, do it. But always ask, how am I serving others, is the path I’m taking honest, and am I abiding by justice.