Everyday, we are being bombarded with advertisements, news, and the like telling us how we should be different.  The advertisements attempt to  demonstrate to you that your life could be better if you purchase a particular product.  The news is telling you how bad things are in the world, your city, and your neighborhood.  Who knows what the rationale in all of this is, other than to get your attention.

However, if you let yourself run on “auto pilot” you may not realize that you are letting the world tell you who you are, or rather who you are not.  Suppose, you decide that it is time to purchase a new car.  You have been driving the same car for the past ten years, and it is becoming unreliable.  The world has been telling you that if you purchase a brand new shiny car, you will have a better life.

You, however, understand that purchasing a new vehicle is expensive, and you are not willing to take on much more debt.  You are at an auto dealership when a sales rep approaches you with a big smile.  He listens to your needs, and begins to show you cars.  You ask the price, and that is when it all begins.

He takes you into the dealership and you sit at his desk.  He begins by telling you how low he can get your monthly payment.  You inform him that you are only interested in the total price of the car, and you will figure out yourself on how you will pay for it.  The smile on the sale rep’s face disappears for he was hoping to make a nice commission on the financing.

He tries to convince you that you are better off financing with them, but you stick to your guns and purchase the car the way you would like to purchase it, with your own savings while borrowing a small amount from a financing company you have dealt with in the past.

The man reluctantly sells you the car, but continues to tell you how bad a deal you are going to get financing it elsewhere.  He almost makes you feel guilty for your decision.  After the purchase, you begin to question your decisions, even though you worked out the analysis which seemed to be cheaper your own way.  You will have the car paid off in a year, whereas he was giving you essentially “free money” for a five-year plan.

Your intuition is to pay off the car as soon as possible, for you do not like to have debt.  That is “who you are” and you have decided to stick to your guns.

When someone tries to move you away from “who you are” to something different it can be a growing experience, in some cases.   However, in other cases, it may take you away from your “core values” and move you into an area that feels contradictory to “who you are.”

You are your “core values.”  This may be your religious beliefs, your fundamental views of the world, or just how you manage your finances.  While, we feel that it is important to continually re-evaluate those values, you need to consciously make those adjustments on your own accord.

When you get swayed by the world, to think that we should be going to war, when fundamentally you feel it is not right, you are letting others let you stray from your core.  It is common for others to help sway you to help themselves solidify their own position.   After all, the more people who purchase the same product, or belong to the same church as me, the more it must mean that I have made the correct decision myself.

Look around as you go through this day, and see how many times you are straying away from your “core” and who you are, to join the masses.  If that is what you want it is perfectly okay, however, it’s when you begin to unconsciously stray from your core is when you begin to lose your identity.

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It is common for people to feel most comfortable in their own decisions when others join them in that decision.  Do not let that influence take you away from who you really are.

Written Tue, Apr 1, 2014, 7:35 – 7:49 AM MT