Why Am I Doing This Part 2

In the grand division of all of God’s creations, there are things to act and things to be acted upon. — David A Bednar

Sometimes the answer to the question, “Why am I doing this?” is straightforward, but sometimes it can be answered in layers that are far more meta.

  1. The layer where we tell ourselves and others the logical answer
  2. The layer where we don’t tell ourselves or others, but secretly know a different answer
  3. The layer where we suspect there may be other forces at work, but we don’t see them unless they are pointed out to us
  4. The layer we don’t even question unless circumstances strip away all the other layers

Each layer is governed by scripts but the scripts governing the bottom two are the most powerful because we aren’t aware of them. They are written in childhood or inculcated by our culture:

  1. I bought this house because it is in a good neighborhood where home values will never go down.
  2. I bought this house because it has a big garage that I can someday turn into a studio where I can make industrial sculpture.
  3. I bought this house because my parents lost their home when I was a child and it traumatized our family.
  4. I bought this house because in America, we own our homes and renters are losers.

We are better able to live intentionally—to act and not to be acted upon—when we understand all of the scripts that are driving our actions.

h/t Ramit Sethi and Chase Jarvis