It's Your Path That Defines You. - Whose shoes are you walking in?

INTRODUCTION:

Greetings to all. Think about this question. Are we now living in a society where people are so confused about their identity that they do not know what defines them? I receive many emails asking me to discuss the current state of our society with regard to individual identity. This post involved much research and a hard look at myself and the path I chose in life. A path I must say that had many twists and turns along the way. A path I strayed from many times until I finally got it right.

The question is, what is right? First, no one has the right to judge others for their personal life choices as to what they choose to be. Let's make that perfectly clear from the start. Part of being an individual is being who and what you are as a person. There is one caveat to that. As much as each individual has that right, they DO NOT have the right to impress or force their choices on others. That is where the problem starts. Hopefully, this post will shed a little light on the topic.

FROM THE BEGINNING:

Whether people realize it or not, every person has had someone along the way or more than one person that has influenced them. That influence could have been good, or it could have been bad. It could have been anyone. A family member, a teacher, a boss at work, a friend, or anyone you admire. Someone whose shoes would not mind walking in. This is the very beginning of the path you will start to take in your life.

However, do not confuse the path you start on with your choices or goals. They are each different. Also, just because you start out on the wrong path does not mean you cannot change that path. Let's look at each briefly.

Your life path is a combination of the choices you have made and your experiences. Look at your path in life as if you were walking down a road.

That road may twist and turn. You may take a right or a left or walk straight. That is your path. What might be considered a good or bad path is subjective. Although, a good or bad path is usually determined by what society considers acceptable. For example. If you choose a life of crime, most would say you took a bad path in life. If you worked hard, provided for your family, and were caring, most would say you took a good path.

Admittedly, those examples are general, but I think you understand the meaning. During this time, as you grow and learn, you develop character. Your character is your mental and moral qualities. How you think, feel, and act. These qualities vary from individual to individual. Like your path, the character of an individual is also subjective. The thing to remember is everyone has character. Whether it is good or bad, society determines.

Goals are key in our lives. Our goals may change many times. Your goals can be many things. What you what to be in life, and what you want to achieve. Basically, it's what your ambitions are and what desired result you want. As a rule, people who consider themselves to be individual thinkers, meaning they make their own decisions and choices and do not necessarily follow what others do, are more sure of themselves and, in most cases, find it easier to achieve their desired result.

We have all heard the term 'followers.' People who will go along with the crowd or whatever the crowd is doing, even if they question the motives. This is not to say that being a follower is bad. However, these people will tend to find it harder to achieve their desired results because they are too busy following others.

Earlier, I asked, whose shoes do you want to walk in? Followers walk in the shoes of others. Leaders and individuals walk in their own shoes. Keep in mind that I am talking about life in general. As a whole. Not the crowd you hung out with in high school. There is nothing wrong with having friends and being a part of something larger than yourself. The problem arises when people stop thinking for themselves and make bad choices. How many times when you were growing up did your parents say to you, "If they jump off a cliff, does that mean you will?"

In our younger years, we make bonds with our friends. To some degree, we are all followers at some point in time. The difference is some grow out of it, and others do not. However, this is where it all starts. This is where it begins. This is a brief overview. Each topic can be a book in itself. However, this is only a blog post, so summarizing is key.

INDIVIDUALITY AND DIVERSITY AND FREEDOM:

I must include these topics to complete this post and address the questions regarding modern-day society. Freedom is the big question mark in modern-day society. Do we really have our freedom? There are many types of freedom. Freedom from government, political freedom, religious freedom, and individual freedom. Just to name a few. I want to talk about individual freedom. Why? Because that addresses both individuality and diversity. What are individuality and diversity?

Individuality - the quality or character of a particular person or thing that distinguishes them from others of the same kind, especially when strongly marked.

Diversity - the practice or quality of including or involving people from a range of different social and ethnic backgrounds and of different genders, sexual orientations, etc

(courtesy of Google)

We are all individuals. We each have qualities and characteristics that are our own. Inherent only to us.