If what you say you believe and how you actually live don’t align, cognitive...

If what you say you believe and how you actually live don’t align, cognitive dissonance will drive you mad.

The only way to truly know yourself is to mindfully write down your beliefs—your hierarchy of priorities, what matters most, how you discern right from wrong—and break it down to the smallest details.

It’s not enough to say “I believe in the Bible, my church, the law, or society’s morals”. You must granularly understand what you personally believe those authorities expect, what you’ve agreed to, or what your own moral compass demands. Leave no wiggle room to dodge tough decisions or excuses.

Only by deeply knowing your beliefs and letting them sink into your mind can you act on them instead of impulse. So then, keep a journal—track what you do when choices arise, your demonstrated interests, what you pursue, what you reject, where you’re tolerant or intolerant.

Ask yourself: What will I fight for? Suffer for? Die for? Live for? Search your heart, examine your mind, and truly know yourself.

Otherwise, your subconscious, which sees you clearer than you realize, will spot the disconnect and drive you insane trying to rectify the difference.

Be healthy, be wise, be aware, my friends.