Are you awake??

Your automatic answer to the question above might as well be "of course I am! Look at me! I am reading this post!" But are you REALLY? What does it mean to be awake? Are you 100% sure that you are not another sheep walking the streets on automatic mode? 

During my Bachelors I took a class on "Entrepreneurial Attitude" (it was amazing!). Right in the beginning of the course, the teacher went on about how Hollywood is constantly displaying the present society and its current challenges. We have films that cover a wide array of topics, from terrorism and war, to relationship challenges and teen pregnancy. Showing the class several movie posters, the teacher allowed us to truly observe how that initial statement was indeed truthful. We all got struck though when he stopped with a final poster displaying zombies. We were then faced with a question: if Hollywood movies truly intend to expose actual social issues, how come every once in a while there are movies about spectacular creatures like zombies? That's when the teacher told us that he is not surprised at all about this, that he actually sees zombies every single day when he walks through his doorstep.

We were obviously taken aback by the thought of it, but we slowly came to understand and agree with the point he was making. Zombies do indeed exist in the present world. They wake up at the same time every day, they eat, get dressed in the exact same uniform, they go to work where they perform daily tasks without questions, they get back home after the exact amount of hours spent at work, they eat, they watch the exact same shows, they go to bed, and they repeat. Eat, work, sleep, repeat. Oh! And they get an amount of money every month in the exact same date for this daily repetitive routine and they get to spend this money on more uniforms, more shows, and other related activities. Why money? Because money seems to be the very social foundation of today's world. The ultimate social goal. Afterall, without money, one cannot eat, work, sleep, repeat...

So now I ask you again: are you awake? Or is your brain working in constant blank mode? Are you just one more social sheep? One more zombie?

If there are so many zombies everywhere, one must assume that being a zombie must be the easiest way out. And indeed it is. Think about it. Isn't it way easier to go through life without wondering about the big questions? Without even asking questions in the first place? Without thinking about your purpose? Without criticizing the existing issues around us? Isn't it way easier to be ignorant? After all, ignorance is bliss. Isn't that what they say?

To step out of the status quo, to step out of a pre-established comfort zone, to ultimately change is so hard. What is fear that makes us so hesitant to embrace change? What is it about the unknown that makes us so scared? Why are we so afraid of the dark? WAKE UP ALREADY!

Being awake is being alive. Being awake is facing your fears. Being awake is FREEDOM. Wake up to think, wake up to be a critic, wake up to learn, wake up to ask questions, wake up to grow, wake up to evolve! Wake up to be free even in the dark!