At any given time, you can do a lot of things. You can raid the fridge, you can watch YouTube, you can check your phone. You can call a friend, dance naked, check the score or make a purchase online.

 

But there’s a huge difference between can and must. 

 

There are powers bigger than you working to turn a can into a must and control your daily actions. These powers create social pressure that means you must keep up with that sport or that WhatsApp group. These powers design food with the perfect combination of fat and sugar that means you must indulge. They make coding apps that addict you to their newsfeed or notifications that mean you must check and keep scrolling.

 

Just because there’s a sale on, doesn’t mean you must buy. Just because everyone else has seen it, doesn’t mean you must watch. Just because your phone has battery and internet, doesn’t mean you must use it. 

 

Ingrained habits and subtle conditioning mean we forget that everything is a choice. 

 

Notice the difference between can and must and act accordingly.