July 25th, 2025

Power to Choose

Many of us are familiar with the concept of free will—the belief that we’re endowed with the innate ability to make choices based on our own thoughts and actions. But I’m skeptical that many people actually exercise that Free Will. Sure, we like to think we’re independent thinkers, captains of our own destinies, but how often do we pause to question whether our decisions are truly ours?
Particularly in today’s world, the forces nudging (or shoving) us in predetermined directions are louder and more insidious than ever. Social media dictates what we should care about, Hollywood sells us recycled dreams, and advertisers bombard us from 90% of every angle we turn—telling us what to crave, what to fear, even what to be. It’s not just about products; it’s about identities, ideologies, and the unspoken rules of belonging. And haven’t we all been asked by a parent at some point, “So, if your friends all jump off a bridge, are you gonna jump too?” That question isn’t just a cliché—it’s Free Will’s desperate attempt to snap us awake, to remind us that we’re allowed to hesitate, to dissent, to say, “Actually, no. That doesn’t sound like me.”
Yet here’s the uncomfortable truth: resisting the pull of conformity takes work. It’s easier to adopt prefabricated opinions, to mimic the crowd, and to let algorithms and influencers curate our desires. Real Free Will isn’t just about choosing between options laid out in front of us; it’s about questioning who put them there in the first place—and whether we even want them at all.
Maybe that’s the real test of Free Will: not just the ability to choose, but the courage to ask, “Why am I choosing this?”—and the self-awareness to change course when the answer doesn’t sit right.