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Taking Back Control from a Broken System
Learning to Reclaim Your Authenticity, Autonomy, and Agency
Lawrence Montoya
September 16, 2024
Authenticity means you're true to your own personality, values, and spirit, regardless of the pressure that you're under to act otherwise. You're honest with yourself and with others, and you take responsibility for your mistakes. Your values, ideals, and actions align.
Autonomy—the right or condition of self-government. It is the self-directed pursuit of personal growth, creative expression, and mastery over one's life. It embodies the drive to independently acquire skills, overcome challenges, and craft a unique identity, all while integrating diverse interests and maintaining self-reliance. Autonomy is the foundation for self-actualization, where one's journey is guided by a commitment to introspection, resilience, and the continuous development of a personalized framework for living.
Agency is the sense of control that you feel in your life, your capacity to influence your own thoughts and behavior, and have faith in your ability to handle a wide range of tasks and situations. Your sense of agency helps you to be psychologically stable, yet flexible in the face of conflict or change.
In a world where conformity is rewarded and individuality the tradeoff, you find yourself on a path that feels increasingly out of alignment with who you are truly meant to be. You're awakening to the realization that you've outsourced your entire life to a broken system—a system that dictates and controls what you should value, how you should live, and what success looks like, all while covertly eroding your autonomy, authenticity, and agency.
The system promised you liberty in exchange for your obedience, but it never disclosed to you the true cost: your dreams, desires, potential, and vision—the very things that require the autonomy, authenticity, and agency it strips away.
The Script You Didn’t Write
Think about it—how much of your life has been lived according to someone else’s script? From the education you pursued to the career you entered, to the lifestyle you maintain, how many of these choices were truly yours and not your conditioning?
The system is designed to funnel you into predefined roles, telling you that if you just follow the steps—get the degree, land the job, buy the house, find the wife—you’ll be happy. But what if those steps don’t align with who you are or what you truly want?
The truth is, the script wasn’t written with or by your own hand. It’s time to ask yourself: Are you living a life that feels authentic to you, or are you merely ticking off boxes on a list that someone else created? The more you adhere to this outdated system, the further you drift from your true self. The system isn’t designed to fuel your individuality; it’s designed to maintain its own stability at your expense.
Reclaiming Control
Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.
To reclaim control, the first step is to acknowledge the areas where you’ve surrendered it.
Where have you handed over your decision-making power?
Where have you allowed external expectations to dictate your choices?
Once you identify these areas, you can begin the process of taking back the reins.
The second step is to design a life that reflects who you are and what you truly want.
This requires deep introspection and the courage to define your own version of success. It means breaking away from the paths laid out for you and carving out your own. It’s about aligning your life with your core values, passions, and desires, rather than what society necessarily prescribes.
Redefining Success
To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.
Success is a deeply personal concept, yet we’ve been conditioned to see it through a narrow lens—one that equates it with wealth, status, material possessions and power.
But what if success isn’t about what you have, but about who you are and where you’re headed? What if true success is measured by how closely your life aligns with your core values and desires?
Redefining success starts with understanding that your worth isn’t determined by external markers. It’s about finding fulfillment in living authentically, pursuing what resonates with you, and creating a life that feels meaningful on your terms.
Living on Your Own Terms
Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.
Taking back control means making conscious choices about how you spend your time, who you surround yourself with, and what you allow into your life.
It’s about being deliberate in your actions and intentional in your decisions, choices, and judgments.
This requires a shift from passive consumption to active creation. Instead of following the script, you start writing your own.
Living on your own terms isn’t easy—it requires you to confront the fears and doubts that arise when you step outside the prescriptions of the system. It demands resilience and a willingness to embrace uncertainty. But the reward is a life that feels true, meaningful, and authentic to you—one where you’re not merely surviving or thriving, but resonating at a high frequency.
The Power of Authenticity
Authenticity is the daily practice of letting go of who we think we’re supposed to be and embracing who we are.
At the heart of reclaiming control is the power of authenticity.
When you live authentically, you align your actions with your values, passions, and beliefs. You stop seeking external validation and start living in a way that feels right to you.
Authenticity isn’t just about being true to yourself; it’s about having the courage to show up as you are, even when it’s uncomfortable or inconvenient.
Embrace the Journey
Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.
This journey isn’t about perfection—it’s about progress.
It’s about taking small, intentional steps each day toward a life and a vision that feels more aligned with who you are.
It’s about being patient with yourself as you unlearn the habits and beliefs that no longer serve you and replace them with ones that do.
Conclusion
The time to take back control of your life is now.
Begin by questioning the script you’ve been following, and have the courage to write your own.
Redefine success in the way that resonates authentic to you, and live each day with intention and purpose.
Reclaim your autonomy, authenticity, and agency, and begin living on your own terms.
This is your life—make it a reflection of who you truly are.
Fortis Fortuna Adiuvat (Fortune Favors The Bold)
Thank you for reading,
—Lawrence