I think you’re right. I think we’re probably more likely to think about self-worth and self-confidence than self-control.
There’s something about self-control that is actually a lot more important than self-control, and it’s one of the things that drives me crazy. In my life, self-control is a little of a problem. I don’t have any self-control. I don’t take my own choices in these games or in life. I’ve always had a lot of self-control and a lot of self-ownership.
There is nothing wrong with self-control. Self-control and self-ownership are related. But in terms of how we really relate to our self-control, the distinction between the two is very, very important. Self-ownership is more about “I have a say, and I can make a difference”. Self-control is much more about “I have a say, and I can keep it to myself”.
A few of the characters on Deathloop have a penchant for saving people from death. Why not make them do all the work? I have a great memory of saving people from death, and of saving me from a horrible death, and I really like saving people from death.
These guys are all self-conscious about their past, and it has a lot to do with how they made their way into our lives. As the game progresses, they learn that their pasts are important to them, and it’s only through a lot of self-awareness and introspection that they can look at themselves and not know who they are.
You see, a lot of the time in our lives we don’t really know who we are. That can be scary, even terrifying at times. Not knowing who we are, who we belong to, who we’re supposed to be. Sometimes we just feel overwhelmed by it all, and it feels like it’s overwhelming our very identity, our very self.
This feeling is what makes a difference in our experience.
People who go into business for themselves often describe the feeling of starting the business as like being “born again.” In the business world, you are actually a brand, a brand of yourself. You are creating yourself anew and you are making a name for yourself, which is hard work, but can be fun. You are making you a brand, and therefore you can be proud of yourself. And if you are proud of being a brand, then you are empowered. You can be strong.
When I was in business school, I did a lot of research to find out what kind of stuff was hard or easy to do. I was told that the best things to consider when starting a new business were the things that would make the biggest difference in your bottom line. So what did I find? It’s pretty obvious. If you can’t take a lot of risk, then you may not be able to turn a profit.
What I discovered is that the best things to consider are those things that will make a huge difference in your bottom line. And they are all things that you can learn.