It's not about the money

I saw the Shawshank redemption yesterday, and I thought a lot about it. One idea in particular stuck with me. You are your freedom.

Let me start with a hypothetical situation. Let’s say you lose all your money tomorrow and are completely broke. Does that unfortunate incident devoid you of your personality? Does it snatch away your existence? Do you feel bound and restricted in the very thoughts that distinguish you from the other 7 billion humans? I guess not. Though something definitely has changed, since you no longer have money.

Now lets assume, I give you back your money but lock you inside a cage. How different are things now? Nothing has changed in the outside world. Nothing changes in the inside world. The only thing is that the inside (you) can’t interact with the outside (everything else). Complicated to think about such a situation right?

Let’s assume the third case now. What if I don’t lock you in a cage, but rather force you to follow a schedule which I have devised for you. You still interact with everything you’ve already been doing since the day you’re born; the only difference is that you interact when I tell you to.

It starts getting tricky now. (Each of the below cases are isolated on their own, none of them are related to any other case):

• Everything is exactly the same, except you’ve lost every .
• Everything is exactly the same, except single of your .
• Everything is exactly the same, except friend and family .
• Everything is exactly the same, except I alter your brain .
• Everything is exactly the same, except to work at 50% of .
• Everything is exactly the same, except normal for the rest .
• Everything is exactly the same, except of your life one of .
• Everything is exactly the same, except your leg and one of .
• Everything is exactly the same, except your hands no longer.
• Everything is exactly the same, except function properly .
• Everything is exactly the same, except you’ve lost 75% of .
• Everything is exactly the same, except all your memories .
• Everything is exactly the same, except you can no longer .
• Everything is exactly the same, except talk and hear you .
• Everything is exactly the same, except can no longer see .

Do you see it? You’ve already forgotten the case where you’ve lost all money. Because it’s so irrelevant in the grand scheme of things which appropriately define YOU. Even though wealth is the easiest of ways for OTHERS to distinguish you from everybody else, it’s probably the worst way for YOU to feel yourself.

Think about this. It’s powerful. And it changes my life every single day.