Freedom Isn’t Free. Or Is It?

Freedom. A difficult word to define and even harder to fully grasp conceptually.

There are many ways to view freedom. One concept that has always fascinated me is the balance between societal freedom and individual freedom. On the surface, these seem at odds with one another. For society to be free, it cannot be oppressed by bad actors. Therefore, we must lock up these bad actors and remove them from society. In doing so, we destroy the individual freedom of the person we call a “bad actor.” On the contrary, if we let these bad actors roam free and do as they wish, our society would be overrun by violence, at the hands of these “free” individuals.

Hold this concept of the balance between societal and individual freedom in your mind for a moment while I discuss another aspect of freedom.

There are two main definitions of the word freedom: the classical and the philosophical.

Freedom in the classical sense is defined as the ability to act in any self-determined way, without consequence.

The inherent flaw with this definition is that any action, taken to the extreme, will impose limits on other areas of one’s own life. Therefore, the action itself, performed under the guise of “freedom,” will ultimately limit one’s own freedom. For example, someone who is free to smoke as much crack cocaine as they wish will eventually become enslaved to the drug and unable to function in normal society. Banished to the fringes, they may lose the freedom to access shelter, purchase food, travel where they wish, or even sleep where they want—if a mean ol’ cop like myself shows up and tells them they can’t sleep in the Starbucks bathroom.

So, is the freedom to smoke crack really freedom? Or is it simply the permission to imprison oneself in a cage of limited ability and self-deprecation?

I much prefer the philosophical definition of freedom. It is defined as the freedom for an individual to do what they ought to do—not what they want to do.

The only problem with this definition is determining what one ought to do. That comes down to the concept of right and wrong.

I think that you ought not to have the freedom to smash a beer bottle over someone’s head at 2 a.m. in a bar downtown—but maybe you only did that because you thought they ought not to hit on your girlfriend.

So, who determines right and wrong?

If you are looking at societal freedom as a whole, society gets to decide what is right and wrong. In a democracy like we have in the United States, that looks like the population electing people to power by individual votes, and then allowing those people in power to enact laws that govern the population.

However, if you're looking at individual freedom, then what determines right and wrong is the individual. That is, you—you get to decide how much individual freedom you have.

Societal freedom can manifest in various forms, including freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of movement, freedom of assembly, freedom of the press, and so on—each playing a crucial role in a person's ability to live a self-determined life. But that self-determined life is 100% up to the individual. You can be a prisoner in your own mind just as easily as you can be the king of your own hill.

So, what about the balance between societal freedom versus individual freedom? I believe that true individual freedom is inherent to the function of societal freedom. If each individual is truly disciplined in all areas of their life, then society as a whole functions quite well, and there is no need for tyrannical oversight by an outside force to limit freedoms.

The self-disciplined and free population is perfectly capable of governing itself through the democratic process. But self-discipline is where it all begins.

So, what does true individual freedom actually look like?

In the words of US Navy SEAL Jocko Willink: “Discipline equals freedom.”

You might think that self-discipline and individual freedom sound like opposites, so how can they possibly equal each other?

Here are a few examples of what Jocko meant:

• Discipline with money equals the freedom to purchase what you want. For example: If you are responsible with your spending and good at saving money, you'll have the freedom to go on vacation and eat at that fancy restaurant. You won’t be limited by what's in your wallet.
• Discipline with time equals the freedom to do what you want to do, instead of what you have to do. For example: If you wake up with the first alarm instead of hitting snooze five times, cut down on doom scrolling on Instagram, and actually manage your time responsibly, you’ll have the freedom to do things in your day that truly bring you happiness. Spending time with family or reading a good book—things that otherwise, you just "wouldn't have time for."
• Discipline with diet and exercise equals the freedom to move about at will, climb a flight of stairs, or go for a run whenever you want.
• Discipline in your relationships equals the freedom to trust and be trusted.
• Discipline with your mind equals the freedom to relax and limit stress.
• Discipline in the neuroscience method equals… you guessed it… the freedom to say any word, anywhere, at any time.
• Discipline equals a healthy and fulfilling life.

Societal freedom is won by the blood of warriors. Individual freedom is all in your mind.

Societal freedom is earned by hundreds of thousands working together. Individual freedom can only be earned by oneself.

How free you are individually depends on how disciplined you are individually. It’s completely up to you.

Viktor Frankl, a Holocaust survivor and author of Man’s Search for Meaning, wrote the following:

"Man does not simply exist, but always decides what his existence will be, what he will become in the next moment. By the same token, every human being has the freedom to change at any instant.”

The therapists here at the Words Stop Stuttering Academy are your guiding light, helping you find that discipline to change yourself. That's what they do, and they're pretty darn good at it, too. But your freedom from stuttering is up to you and you alone.

So, is freedom, in any form or at any level, free? No.

It always costs something. Discipline, at any level, will cost you. But in my opinion, it’s always worth it.

Has anyone noticed that these meetings are full of people who have made the decision to take control of their own future?

I’m so inspired by each and every one of you.

This is a very unique group. You might think you're different because you used to have a stutter. You’re wrong. You’re different because you took control of your own life. You grabbed the bull by the horns.

You didn’t just sit back and ride the waves of life like so many on this planet. You beat the waves into submission, cut your own path, and made stuttering regret the day it met you.

I’m honored to know each and every one of you, and I’m so proud of how far you’ve all come. I’m also excited to see where you’ll go.

Let me end with a question: With the discipline you’ve already developed through the neuroscience method, what freedoms have you gained?

I’ll answer this question first. I have the freedom to speak to anyone I want to. I have the freedom to walk into a room and start introducing myself to perfect strangers. I have the freedom to get up and speak publicly. I have the freedom to live my life how I want to.