There are two subjects that will never stop fascinating me in life; Biology and Psychology. The more I try to understand it, the harder it is to comprehend that all these complexities of life started from almost nothing (if you believe in God). Another argument will be that we evolved, whichever suits your fancy, it is no small feat.

Let’s take a woman’s period, for example, total biology, but it influences your mind too. There are changes in your thought process, your mood changes faster than a chameleon running through a children’s park. All for what? A few days of bleeding..

Here’s another instance: when you’re sick, the only functions your body and mind carry out are towards healing, every other thing becomes secondary. You don’t really care about love, goals, who won the match or if the number of your followers increase, you just want to get better.

Then, how do you feign ignorance about who’s really in charge?

It’s still you, relax, you can lift the spoon to your mouth when you want, right? Cool, but can you control when to be hungry or not hungry?

You get it now? I hope so. This is not about rendering you powerless, it’s about staying in charge, but doing it right. One of the best pieces of advice you’ll get is to focus on what you can control, but I think there should be an addendum to it.

Focus on what you can control, but give some attention to what controls you.

You cannot control how your body functions, but you can control how healthy it is. You can’t stop yourself from thinking, but you can filter the quality of your thoughts by letting in only the right information. It’s like turning on the engine of a heartbreak car. You see the red flag, but you can choose to ignore it. You can convince yourself that it’s just a darker shade of pink.

Now that we have established that not all power belongs to you, there is one superpower that’s only yours. It’s one in which you have absolute control and that influences every other thing that tries to control you, whether your body, mind, environment, weather, friends, or whatever is trending.

It’s the power of choice

Choice is the reason you’re reading this. It’s why you prefer some people to others and why you will always have options. If you master it, you unlock infinite power in your abilities as a human, you can choose your reaction to any situation. You have the power to do anything you want as long as you decide to.

But there’s a catch: we get power drunk too easily. If you’re great at controlling your emotions, you become manipulative. If you learn how your body operates, you take it for granted. Because you can choose does not mean you always go for the best option.

So, how do you stay in charge, knowing fully well that there are forces out of your control?

You choose, and you choose right.