We’ve been told that freedom is our birthright — that we’re born free. But look around. If freedom were truly free, why do so many people feel trapped — in debt, in fear, in dependence on systems that were never designed to set them free?

Somewhere along the way, we were programmed to believe that poverty is noble, that struggle earns virtue, and that waiting for rescue is humble. But there’s nothing noble about surrendering your power. There’s nothing admirable about letting someone else decide your worth or your wage.

Not long ago, freedom looked different. We wore many hats — worker, gardener, fixer, cook, builder. We learned through doing. We knew how to grow food, repair what broke, and create value with our own hands. Convenience changed that. Microwaves replaced meals made from scratch. SMART devices replaced smart thinking. Each advancement promised to save us time, yet somehow we’ve become too busy, too distracted, and too dependent to remember what we actually traded away.

Aha!~ Freedom isn’t given — it’s built.

It’s the result of knowing who you are and taking radical responsibility for that knowledge. It costs time, energy, and courage. It costs you the comfort of excuses. It costs you the easy out of blame.

Real freedom means you get up before you feel ready. You learn before you need to. You prepare before you’re asked. You invest — in your mind, your body, your finances — because you refuse to rent your life from anyone else.

That’s the cost of freedom. And it’s worth every ounce of effort you put in.

This week in Human U we’ll talk about taking responsibility for freedom. It’ll be a zinger! Human U membership is only $11.11 per month. Join us here and join our rich, live conversations weekly at 4:30 eastern every Wednesday.