When people impose on you – either by saying you “should” behave a certain way, or by shaming you with their disapproval, you have in your arsenal a question that will send them packing.
That question is, “Why?”
Why should I care about your cause?
Why should I believe your premise?
Why are you even bothering me?
The only believable answer to this question is, “because I said so.”
It will be a glorious day when someone answers you in this manner, because the odds of it happening are close to zero.
People have become so accustomed to this kind of passive aggressive mode of coercion, they would be shocked if you ever called them out.
Think about it – all the people promoting causes, political candidates, approved modes of being, are basically just trying to force you to do as they say.
Sometimes they are doing it for explicit benefit – if you support their cause, they get money or power. If you vote for their candidate they likewise benefit. If you follow their scheme of life they will sleep better knowing everyone is acting the way they believe people are supposed to behave.
You are the only person who can tell yourself to do anything.
If someone tries to pressure you, you may want to be civil and ask yourself, “why is this person pressuring me?”
Or if you feel like it’s time to assert yourself socially, you can call them out.
“Why are you saying that? Do you know it’s true? What do you get out of it?”
Be advised, you should be ready for a fight.
If you are going to challenge someone at their unconscious level of assumption, make sure to watch their eyes when you respond with your question.
Literally their eyes will spin in their head like the wheels in a one-armed bandit.
They might even faint.
You should be standing back a couple feet, also, in case you are dealing with an unstable person.
At best, you will get that person or group off your back.
The crafty ones will move on to their next mark, gathering willing converts to their unexamined ideal.
And you will feel better, trust me.
Depending on how old you are, you’ve been swallowing malarkey from people trying to tell you to behave as they say for decades.
At some level, if you want to be free, you have to start pushing back.
You have to ask yourself, at least silently, “why?” when you are presented with some new idea that is going to save the world, or is “important.”
You should ask yourself, “how does this benefit me?”
If you can’t come up with something that appeals to you, reject it.
And mark that person, that group or that movement in your mind as your enemy.
Yes, I said enemy.
Anyone trying to tell you what to do or think, for their own purposes, for no other reason save they say so, is trying to control you.
If a slave catcher were to approach you with a collar meant to go around your neck, what would you do?
If you couldn’t run, wouldn’t you fight?
Due to the nature of how our economy has evolved, there are more scams, grifters and promoters than ever before.
After all, getting money for doing no work and merely getting people to believe in your cause is a lot easier than working.
You have to be on guard against enemies who would first enslave you mentally, and then physically.
Ask yourself why.
If you don’t like the answer, tell them to beat it.
If they won’t leave, explain to them that you are free and not about to join their gang.
If they don’t understand that, ask them if you can run their organization – because they are just as enslaved as the people they think they hold in thrall.
Your first obligation is to yourself.
You don’t have to believe in global warming, or fairness, or capitalism.
You have to think and behave in a way that delivers the things you want, for yourself.
Everyone else can beat it.
This kind of thinking is what the hidden philosophy is all about – thinking critically, and for yourself in all kinds of situations.
To gain access to the recorded version of the hidden philosophy, click here.
