Declare Your Independence

This month we celebrated Independence Day with picnics, fireworks, patriotic parades, speeches and all manner of celebrations to honor the birth of the United States. But what often gets lost in the festivities is the actual "declaration" that preceded the bloodshed that led to our nation's stand as an independent and sovereign country.

It strikes me that we as individuals would be wise to occasionally re-read that document, the one where the leaders of the US Continental Congress declared our independence and why they chose that path. Because if there is anything true about being a citizen of a free nation it is that we must embrace that independence and freedom. It's not enough to simply talk about it or listen to others make speeches about freedom.

So this week, I share with you the immortal words of our Declaration of Independence. As you read them, ask yourself where you may need to declare your personal independence. I don't mean in any way to cheapen the notion of independence and make it a "self help mantra." But a nation is built on the collective psyche and internalized operating principles of its citizens. We are responsible for the choice to be personally enslaved or independent. Are you ready to be free in ways you've never thought of before?

• Is there a habit that you're ready to be freed from?
• Is there a habit you're ready to embrace?
• Is it time to let go of the status quo in a relationship, your career or some other aspect of your life?
• Are you ready to declare your independence?

Read on and sit with these questions over the next few days. Let the words penetrate deeply and remember the stock you come from. You are as free and independent as you choose to be.