One of the reasons I work for myself is freedom. I want to minimise how often I need to decline doing something important to me (like a family outing) because I have to be at work.

But I’ve noticed: the more freedom I obtain—the fewer rules and restrictions I have—the more I’m left without a sense of purpose.

Like so many things, accumulate too much of it and the scale tips to chaos.

[I]f I’m a free agent, my first reaction to a command might just be that nobody, not even God, tells me what to do, even if it’s good for me. But the story of the golden calf also reminds us that without rules we quickly become slaves to our passions—and there’s nothing freeing about that.

– Jordan Peterson, 12 Rules For Life

Freedom is wonderful, but I think we also need rules and structure. Discipline. Something to aim toward day to day. Building character. Keeping us in line with our own morality.

Maybe true freedom isn’t a lack of rules. It’s the ability to define the rules yourself.