Get used to these work posts, I sit here for 7 hours & talk to maybe 3 people, MAYBE...& I get bored too easily.

Since I hardly ever come in contact with any form of intelligent life all day long, I have to find all these weird ways to entertain me--I too have discovered how easily entertained I really am. Today, as "entertainment" I decided I'd take track of all of the smoke breaks taken by the gas station employees. This was originally a method to keep myself slightly entertained but it ended up promoting me to think about a lot of things. I do lots of thinking while I'm here too. ANYWAYS..I've been here since 10 & there have been 16 smoke breaks taken. 9 alone by the same woman. I haven't seen her outside once without lighting up. To be honest, it made me pretty sad, knowing that she has enslaved herself by something physically & spiritually damaging, but it got me thinking:

What things do I enslave myself with that are stunting my growth & progression?
I'll tell you right now, there are many things, I don't need to put them out there for you all to know what some of them probably are, but here is my question for you:

What do you enslave yourself with?
Upon observation & personal experience I've created a list of things I feel people commonly enslave themselves with.

1. Fear--nothing else, at least to me, causes more self-imprisonment than the concept of fear.

2. Money--whether it's excessive spending, or an excessive love for it, I've seen many people be enslaved by money. My grandma once said to me, regarding financial matters, "you can have it all [financially], & still have nothing".

3. Attention--this is a big one these days. The crave for attention is everywhere. A lot of people don't do things now days for the sole purpose of that thing, they do it to be recognized. It affects our behaviors, & people act in ways they wouldn't usually just to be noticed. You know that phrase "why fit in when you were meant to stand out?" What happens when everyone lives that way? Everyone is trying to stand out, so by trying to stand out, aren't you really just striving to fit in? Standing out doesn't mean doing things that deviate from the norm to be noticed, it means being true to who you really are, & pursuing wholeheartedly what you love to do--& by doing so, you'll stand out because you, yourself are unique.

5. Peer pressure--People are too easily persuaded these days to do things based off of the opinions of others. Respect others opinions of course, but remember what yours are..Don't change them for anyone but yourself (as selfish as it sounds). Basically-know what you really want out of life & don't let that waver, regardless of what people around you may be saying. Formulate your own opinions & stick to them!

6. Quitting--everything is so easily accessible these days that most people will quit if you have to try kind of hard to get something. But by quitting, you take the easy road, aka the least rewarding road.

7. Substance abuse--alcohol, drugs, food, you name it. I have seen far too many people who I love & care for destroy their lives from these things. They are literally slaves to whatever form of drug they are using. Not only have I seen these things destroy lives, I nearly let it destroy mine trying to help someone out of this mess. Thinking you can save someone is also another way to imprison yourselves, at least in my personal experience.

It's hard not to keep yourself within the walls of your personal jail cell, kind of harsh to say but it's true. But the easiest way to break down those walls is to understand who you are & what you can become. When you understand that, it is unbelievably freeing. I am grateful for the knowledge I have of who I am & the opportunity I have to progress to be something more than I can comprehend. I'm not perfect & I'm learning everyday new things to work on..but I know my Heavenly Father loves me because he gave me this wonderful gift.
the gift of progression.