We Own Every Action We Take

Viktor Frankl provided the world with a look into the human psyche we pray no other psychologist will ever replicate. Frankl looked at his experience in Nazi Concentration Camps scientifically, reflecting on the circumstances in which he found himself and expressing his observations to the world so we might all understand human psychology better.

An excerpt I read today really had me thinking about the power of the human mind and the responsibility we have for our own actions:

“And there were always choices to make. Every day, every hour, offered the opportunity to make a decision, a decision which determined whether you would or would not submit to those powers which threatened to rob you of your very self, your inner freedom; which determined whether or not you would become the plaything of circumstance, renouncing freedom and dignity to become molded into the form of the typical inmate.” (Frankl, 2014, 66)

I reflected on this paragraph for a few minutes after reading it. Frankl is correct. I can’t think of any circumstances where we don’t have an amount of control. We always have control of our thoughts. We have control over our actions in almost all situations.

You may challenge that last statement, and I welcome the discussion, but I’ll expand. 

Imagine an extreme circumstance, such as the one Frankl lived through. If someone holds a gun to my head and tells me to give them my wallet or they’ll kill me, I still have control in the situation. I get to make choices. I can call the gunman’s bluff or force him to pull the trigger by refusing to acquiesce to his demands. That choice is mine. He may pull the trigger anyway, even after I comply, I can’t control that, but I had control over my actions. I wasn’t forced to do anything.

We often blame the gunman for his actions, and he’s certainly responsible for them, but I’m just as responsible for mine. If I fight back, there are consequences. I may win, disarm the gunman, and gain complete control of the situation, but doing so is because of choices I made. I could also lose that fight and suffer some dire consequences.

Regardless of my actions, I have control of my thoughts. I will be afraid (there’s a gun pointing at my head), but my thoughts are my own. The gunman can’t know what I’m thinking, he doesn’t know what I’m going to do, and he will never be able to take that control away from me. I own everything I do in every situation.

The same control exists in more common, everyday circumstances. The dinner I choose to eat tonight, the books I read, the movies I watch, the relationships I build are all under my control. I choose how to talk to other people. I choose how to treat other people. I choose to engage in my bad habits. I choose to reflect on myself and become a better person or not to.

I am in control of my actions. I own every action I take. I own every thought I have. These things are mine and they always will be. Nobody will ever take that from me. 

Works Cited

Frankl, V. (2014). Man's Search for Meaning. Beacon's Press. 02/11/2021