The 3 Pillars Of Freedom: Mindfulness, Gratitude, Presence

To use social media or not?

To eat sugar or abstain?

Is AI going to destroy our life?

What freedom when we're monitorized through the devices and smart cars we're using?

We started to look after this state of freedom more and more in the last decades, especially in the past years.

What's different compared to 50, 100, or 200 years ago? The information being available to every single person with an internet connection.

Suddenly, those who possessed some basic, useful knowledge lost their primary function: to be asked (and paid) in exchange of a certain information or education. And this applies almost anywhere, from teachers, priests, the cool uncle, and even to parents.

This is a double edged sword, with extreme consequences on both sides.

The dangerous part - weakening brain's capacity

When I was a kid, I remember asking my parents about different things, whatever came to my ears and didn't know. And they knew the responses most of the time; I don't even remember one time they couldn't answer. It was fascinating.

Do you remember those times of having a physical map in your hands? Trying to finger point where you actually are to tell the driver (my dad in my case) where to turn right to get to the destination.

It feels unreal looking back.

Getting closer to the age of 20, when Google released more tech, I started to learn fewer and fewer things because anything I needed was a search away. I stopped being curious because I knew that if I was looking for something, I couldn't immediately get the answer.

Nowadays, with AI, everything is exponentially faster, simpler and more reliable. This is the result of the information era.

The problem is what we are doing with all the freed time and thinking capacity, because, frankly, most of it is being spent on endless scrolling on social media, video games, addictions and quick dopamine rewarding activities.

So having instant information is not the evil, but our self-management is, because now we have more time than ever before.

Many people see this as something bad, but we discussed that reality is defined by our perception. If you want to see the bad in anything, no doubt you will.

I think that now is the perfect moment to remember, understand and apply what Einstein once said:

Never memorize something that you can look up.

The positive part - achieving freedom

Because the planet is never unbalanced, thanks to the emerging AI phase and the numerous people that draw attention on the fact we are completely losing ourselves, we started to put deeper questions like:

Who am I?
What's the mindfulness concept?
What is really acceptance?
What about gratitude, empathy, compassion?

Ironically, none of those subjects is new at all, moreover, they're part of our history. But the trigger to get those questions out was missing. People had an extremely simple life: food, work, sex, sleep.

Now, we understood that:

Food is various, and has immense impact on our daily energy
Work has to be done in alignment with our values; we can easily change jobs
Emotional intelligence was discovered and we now pay attention how to behave with our kids, relationship and strangers
The term "stress" is louder than ever, leading therapists industry to emerge
We are meant to be creators, not slaves

The vision I created in the past years relies on being grateful for every new thing that is discovered and shared, and find how can I positively benefit from it.

Any energy can be used for doing good, even for the bad seen people. They are not bad, only their decisions are.

I want to share 2 personal changes I've done, where the actions that pulled me off-track were the same actions that pushed me forward.

Many years ago, I found myself caught in the social media trap. I was mindless scrolling through Instagram anytime I was bored, angry, happy, eating, before bed, anxious, depressed, after waking up, even while driving and waiting at the stop.

I decided that it's time to completely quit social media, and I did it up until 2024. So 5 years of looking with bad eyes at any social media platform. This was the vision I created about it, a bad one.

In 2024 I've changed my mind and decided to use social media to work on my personal brand and businesses. The same social media, but another vision from my side.

Social media is dangerous for people lacking control over their mind.

The second change is related to how much energy I had in terms of speaking since I was a kid. I loved to speak about anything, with anybody. I was fascinated to listen or discuss any kind of topics.

The problem was I didn't know how to manage that energy. Not being aware of it, I started to use it towards swearing, lying, gossiping and bumping up my ego with made up stories.

When I started my awareness journey, I thought that part of me is negative and should be shut down. In 2024 I understood that it represents one of my strengths if used appropriately.

I turned that energy into writing these positive letters, speaking and promoting subjects like self-awareness, compassion, empathy, leadership, spirituality, acceptance and a bunch of other subjects, as opposed to how I've been using it before.

If you're known for a negative aspect, don't turn it down, just change your intention behind it.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is the practice of being fully engaged and present in the current moment, without judgment. It involves observing your thoughts and feelings from a distance, rather than getting caught up in them.

Contrary to what is often promoted, it is about paying attention to every thought or activity you are doing. It doesn't require to meditate, as they are separate actions. It can be done while eating, walking, listening to music, reading or working in the gym. Basically anywhere. Just pay attention to one action at a time and stay with it.

This helps with counting a second for a second, instead a 10 seconds for a second (aka life passing by faster and faster).

Time is the same, but sometimes your mind breaks out from the present. If it goes into the future, the time feels faster. If in the past, it feels slower.

Gratitude

This has nothing to do with saying "thank you". I understand and respect those practices, because they are meant for people who are just starting out this path.

Words don't count when we are speaking about gratitude. It should be treated as a feeling, sometimes difficult to explain. It's about taking nothing for granted and respecting any act of goodwill.

There is another type of gratitude, the most profound which requires a lot of work: being grateful even for the bad experiences. I will explain it through some personal examples.

In 2022 I suffered from a severe accident while roller-skating, having an internal bleeding in the left hamstring. For 2 months I barely moved, not leaving home. Like the second COVID. By being grateful that I was still alive, I looked for what I could do: I started practising meditation more intensely, journaling and dove into deeper life questions.

When my fiance told me she'll move to France, it was tough. By being grateful, my mind remained open to seek opportunities. I've changed the home, the job, I discovered what solitude is, and I eventually could move over as well.

Present

Simply put, it is about fully experiencing the current moment without distraction. And this doesn't come first.

You need to practice mindfulness first, to develop the ability to fully focus on a single activity. Then, by understanding gratitude, you can enjoy the present no matter what the experience it comes with.

It has a very tough part though: you need to accept as it is. You may not be in the best position, but here you are, so start working with what you already have.

You cannot change neither the past, nor the future. Some may say that the future can be changed. While I agree to some degree, what I realized is that future is unpredictable, and you may dream for some things, but they could come true in other forms.

Don't wait for the future to dictate your present. The present should dictate your future.

This is why changes should occur immediately, and use the present tense, instead of keep delaying with "I will". Understand that from the moment you will stop caring about what you will do, you'll be able to focus on what you are doing.

Letter's Quest

Since this letter mentions 3 pillars, I have 3 directions to consider for the next week.

To start practising mindfulness, pick a couple activities you love, and be entirely there. Every time your mind wanders elsewhere, bring it back. It's normal to wander, but just don't let it take full control.

Throughout your lifetime, what are 3 experiences you are really grateful for? You may want to deeply focus onto them by bringing them into a short meditation or through journaling.

Lastly, to kick-off present acceptance and today oriented actions, ask yourself what are 2 changes you can do today that will lead you towards an alignment with your desired future. They could be as small as cleaning your room, active listening a friend, avoid one cheap dopamine activity.

Until the next letter, I wish you success in everything you're up to!