It was one late evening. In a taxi going home after running a 5-hour workshop, I struggled to keep my eyes open.

My brain felt squishy. My body desperately called for a soft blanket. Bone tired, but I was also at peace, alive, and happy.

The event was a success. But here was something no one knew: It was my first time hosting a workshop on Freedom.

I was so nervous that 3 hours before the workshop, I exploded. I sat down on the floor and cried, throwing myself a pity-party:

“This is so fucking hard. Why did I do this to myself?”

Thankfully, years of mindfulness practice kicked in.

At first, I tried to keep it together, but a bigger part in me - I’d call it my soul - said: “Just feel it.”

I give myself permission to feel what needs to be felt, and observed myself as the emotions passed through me.

When I was on the floor crying, a part of my consciousness witnessed that pain and smiled. She didn’t judge. She whispered: “You’ll be ok. You know why you do this.”

After making space for the crying baby, I moved on. I stood up from the floor, sat back at my desk, and continue the rehearsal.

How to Find Freedom in Any Situation - Milena Nguyen — *“Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”*
**Viktor E. Frankl**

Why am I telling you this?

Because this is what freedom is all about.

Viktor E. Frankl, Nazi concentration camp survivor, psychologist, and author of the soul-inspiring book Man’s Search for Meaning, taught us that:

“Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”

Here were the responses I chose:

- Allow my fears to be felt (I chose self-love.)

- Do the event anyway. (I chose courage.)

You can have everything you love stripped away from you. You can be punished for a fault that was not yours.

But there’s one thing that no one can take away from you: your power to choose your response.

Sadly, most of us spend our entire life reacting emotionally to situations.

When we do that we ignore our power to choose our response.

If you often react emotionally, you’re not alone.

I had done it for years. Until I finally realized that I have the power to choose.

To know you have the power to choose is the first step.

To learn to use that power is the second step.

Try this:

Become an observer of yourself. Keep a journal and note down situations when you react emotionally. This simple practice gives you self-awareness. Awareness beckons change.

Mindfulness practice such as meditation is incredibly powerful to create the space to choose the response.

Start small. But start now.

You’re a bird. Why spend more time in a cage that you have the key to open?

Open that cage.

Spread your wings.