Freedom Means You Can Do Whatever You Want?

Before we start our discussion on this topic, we would like to share with you two important ideas regarding what freedom means. The first is that  no one has absolute freedom in the sense that one can completely distance oneself from social norms and values. The second is related to the fact that freedom does not only include the choice between an action and an alternative. Everyone has the freedom to choose what they think and feel.

We must also keep in mind the responsibility that comes with the will and ability to choose. In a way  , all choices are based on a prediction of the consequences: an analysis of profit and loss. This is where morality and ethics begin to come into play. These two things are unique to each person, group, society and the human race as a whole.

If you look at the world, you see that  we think that everyone  (with the exception of people who live in dictatorships, for example) has  the freedom to make their own choices. If we didn’t, what would be the point of democracy? What reason would we have to have laws and standards? After all, these are meant to punish a lack of sense of responsibility (and the propagation of this) about freedom, aren’t they?

Freedom means being autonomous

When you are free, you are also responsible for your own choices, because you make them yourself. This gives you a certain amount of autonomy, with all its consequences, both good and bad. Taking responsibility for the decisions you make takes courage so that you can choose your own path.

This is a price you try to anticipate and minimize, but you will eventually have to pay it anyway. You assume that your choice entails some risk and will certainly have consequences. This risk exists because you are rarely the only one shaping reality. There are many other factors that exert their own influence on this, such as other people.

Being free and thinking for yourself also means accepting that you will make mistakes. You will also have to accept that sometimes you have to try something several times. Here too you will have to deal with responsibility and a price to pay.

An example: many parents do not always do what they would most like to do because they know that they have a responsibility towards their children. They know that blindly following their desires would be at the expense of their family.

Freedom means taking risks. Freedom demands that you carry the true weight of your decisions yourself. It doesn’t mean you can do what you want, when you want it. Instead, it’s about creating a path meant for yourself. It means you decide where to go and who to take on this journey. To be free is to have the autonomy to make your own choices.

My freedom ends where yours begins

Here lies the most important boundary that is set on freedom: the interaction with other people’s freedom, morals and ethics. I am free within certain limits. These limits are based on your own values ​​and what the law allows. In some areas, these laws will be stricter than your personal values. In other areas, the opposite will be true. Then there will be a conflict. Freedom and autonomy give us a certain margin of freedom of movement that is smaller than the margin we see in our imagination.

A value that most people share is that you should not hurt others. That’s where the famous saying, ‘ My freedom ends where yours begins, ‘ comes from. Following this rule is a lesson in itself. If you violate this rule, you will be punished by law for the violation. This is an attempt to demand a refund for the damage caused by the perpetrator.

Too many options

At the end of this article, we would like to highlight a separate phenomenon. People quickly feel overwhelmed by  too many options. We all know the feeling: you go buy a pen, and you get 12 to choose from. Normally, you wouldn’t consciously pay attention to these kinds of choices. However, it’s not that uncommon to spend 10 minutes (or more) on something like choosing a pen. Wouldn’t you rather spend your time doing something else?!

This is how our freedom sometimes “abducts” our free will in a sense. This sheer amount of choices does more damage than good in such a case.

Freedom, in all its paradoxical virtues, is one of our greatest privileges. There is no doubt that most of us have a lot of freedom to do as we please. We can make decisions and grow in ways that are both dependent (due to our social nature) and independent.