All our lives, we have been shaped by our upbringing and social norms. We think that we have free will, but we actually don’t. I have all the time in the world, and without obligations, I thought I was free from restrictions. Still, time and again, I involuntarily followed rules set by a handful of people.

Be productive. Wake up early. Leave a dent. Create meaning.

You get the idea. It all comes down to this: someone tells you what to do. What they want you to do. What they think is the right thing to do.

If you don’t do this, you’re a failure. You’re shunned by society. You’re not doing enough.

I’m not even talking about being mediocre here because we’re already beyond that. They keep telling us that we’re capable of the impeccable.

They expect us to be someone. Someone who can be successful. Someone like them.

But we’ve been used.

It’s all a lie.

The top elites of capitalism expect us to look at them as the quintessence of human beings. The truth is they only expect us to work as machines, run their businesses, and make them more money without them lifting a finger.

It’s not our fault that we want to be successful or have a better life. It’s in our DNA to strive for the best.

Yet, having more time and money doesn’t prevent us from getting trapped.

After all, we human beings are social animals and care too much about blending in. You’re likely to do what your peers do. You listen to what your friends say even though you say you don’t. You’re happy when people look up to you.

Only when we break free from all this can we really listen to ourselves and live as we truly desire.

—Petra