Are You Holding on to an idea of Independence?

I realized this week that for a long time I have held this idea that I should be able to make the money I desired for my desired life on my own and without anyone else's help. However, the reality is I live in a world where I am dependent upon what others have built before me, in order to achieve what I desire in my life.

Of course, you may be smarter than me and have more original ideas that don't require building on top of what others have built. However, what I'm mostly talking about is the fact that in the US, (for example) we have the highway system which was created by those two generations before me and now I get to drive on it as if it's always existed for people to use. The truth is this idea of a highway system in the US is as new as when the Federal government got serious about doing it right in 1956 by funding it and building it.

I didn't create the Personal Computer. The technology I use to communicate and create was created by others before me. I didn't manufacture my guitars nor my amp nor any other technology that I seem to take for granted.

We live in a world where the truth of our situation is simply this: we depend on the structures and tools others have created for us to use and they depend on users to adopt those structures and tools to see how their ideas work in the world.

If I was honest, I would admit that so far in my life, every penny I have ever earned doing a job or a service depended on someone else providing me with that job or a need to provide them my service. Therefore, although I may tell myself I have achieved something on my own or that I wish I could (or when I do achieve it that it was from my own efforts alone) the reality of my life is a reality of interdependence with others.

The reason I'm talking about this is because of a realization that I had last Saturday morning 7/23/16 as I awoke. I realized that for the last year I had been trying to build my own business and I had been making decisions on how to do that really without consulting with a lot of other people.

I realized that was not completely true because I had consulted with others via the courses they created (by other guitar players and guitar teachers) I've also been involved in a few business mentoring Facebook groups. Other than these two ways of finding out what others think as far as starting an on-line business, then it was true that I didn't consult with my family or close friends. But when I did avail myself to others advise, I either accepted and adopted an idea to test them or I rejected them or modified them but either way even when I consulted with others I made the final decision on any ideas I used.

The part where I made the decision and enacted the idea gives the illusion of independence in thought and action. The truth is that I most certainly would have taken completely other directions had I not received the advise I did and even in cases where I researched for opposing ideas of these counsels received I still probably would not have taken the course I did take. The reason is even considering the opposing ideas, the law of first influence of thought comes into play. The first ideas we entertain and seem attracted to are the ideas that seem the most true to us even if the opposing ideas we find afterwards are really the better ideas. The second ideas heard and entertained will not seem as true.

In addition, the time we take to make these considerations is many times limited by the fact that we feel we need to get going and not deliberate too long for fear of not getting to market in time. So sometimes we are in a sense running out and shooting and then aiming or re-aiming and re-aiming again and again until we start to hit the targets.

The fact is I am not independent but reliant on others in the world to get along well for myself.