Agency - The Highest Mindset
Agency is a concept in psychology that refers to the capacity of individuals to act. Action, as we all know, is the primary driver of growth, development, and learning.
So how much agency do you have? What is preventing you from having more?
All of us desire the ability to make choices and impose those choices on the world. It gives us a sense of control over our lives and the lives of others.
If you wish to have agency over others, by definition, it would start with agency over yourself.
Even a prince, born to the ruler of the world, would need it, without which he would not be able to live up to the expectations of his role.
In my humble opinion, there is no greater agency that you can demonstrate than agency over your mind and body.
The development of agency begins in early childhood. Children gradually learn that they can cause events to happen through their actions.
Reaching for objects or walking, for example, demonstrate an emerging understanding of cause and effect.
As children grow, their sense of agency becomes more sophisticated, influenced by interactions with caregivers, social environments, and cultural norms.
Positive reinforcement and supportive environments can enhance a child's sense of agency, while overly restrictive or punitive settings can diminish it. So what do you teach your child? Frankly, what do you tell yourself?
One of the greatest realizations in life is your self-belief in your agency.
Don't confuse agency with karma, or the belief that the events in your life are inevitable and preordained.
Even the Gita tells you that your actions are in your own hands. So building the ability to act at will is easily the greatest skill you can teach yourself.
Building such skills starts with small building blocks married with consistency. For example, exercise every single day. Habits like these build up and, over the long term, give you agency over your mind and body.
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