“I just want what’s best for you.”
How many times have we heard those words? Spoken with care, yet often carrying a quiet undertone of control.
As if someone outside of you could possibly know what’s right for your life better than you do.
But the truth is — no one, no matter how wise, loving, or experienced, can ever know what’s truly best for you.
Only you can.
Not because you always have the answer, but because you carry it within.
Finding it is a journey — sometimes silent, sometimes chaotic.
It’s not about asking for more advice; it’s about daring to listen to that whisper deep inside.
The one that doesn’t shout.
The one that doesn’t argue.
The one that simply is.
When Others Say “I Want What’s Best for You”
It’s often said out of love.
A parent, a friend, or a partner wants to protect us from pain, mistakes, or uncertainty.
But life doesn’t work that way.
If someone else makes your decisions, you no longer live your own life — you live their version of safety.
They mean well, but they forget that your path sometimes leads straight through discomfort.
Through mistakes. Through loss.
No one grows in constant comfort.
So when someone says, “I just want what’s best for you,” it’s wise to thank them for their care —
and then quietly ask yourself:
“Do I really want what they want for me?”
Because what feels right for them could be a dead end for you.
Learning to Listen Within
We live in a world full of noise — advice, opinions, and endless instructions.
Apps, podcasts, experts, gurus.
Everyone wants to guide us somewhere.
But sometimes, silence is the only true guide.
When you stop, breathe, and let the noise fade, you begin to hear yourself again.
That’s when you sense the difference between “I should” and “I want.”
One comes from expectation.
The other from truth.
When Silence Became My Teacher
When I lived aboard my sailboat and the world grew quiet around me, I became aware of what it really means to listen within.
The sea spoke its own language — the wind, the waves, the creaking of the mast. No words, only rhythm and stillness.
There was something deeply healing in that silence.
Time slowed down, and my thoughts were given space to reach their natural destinations.
I stopped reacting to the world and started reflecting on it.
And in that stillness, I began making decisions not from fear or expectation — but from clarity.
From my own strength, guided by what was truly best for me.
Today, I live a different life.
I climb mountains, start projects, meet new people in a new country.
But it all began in that silence at sea.
It taught me that the world may whisper, but it’s within that we truly hear.
The Quiet Kind of Courage
Listening within isn’t always comfortable.
Sometimes you hear things you don’t want to hear —
that you’re in the wrong place, living on autopilot, or that joy has quietly slipped away.
But that’s where courage begins.
The courage to listen.
The courage to change direction.
The courage to stand firm even when others don’t understand.
It’s easier to follow the crowd, to be carried by other people’s plans.
But real life, the kind that holds meaning, begins only when you say:
“Thank you — but I know my next step.”
The Next Step, the Next Choice
It doesn’t have to be a big step.
It can be something as simple as saying no to what no longer feels right.
Or saying yes to something new, even if you don’t know where it leads.
You don’t need the full plan — just direction.
Like sailing: you can’t control the wind, but you can adjust your sails.
Every small decision made from within brings you closer to the life that’s truly yours.
And after a while, you realize you no longer need to ask anyone what’s right.
You feel it.
Your compass has been reset — from the inside.
Owning Your Path
We live in a world obsessed with manuals, ladders, and measurable progress.
Everything must fit into a system, a plan, a definition.
But there’s no manual for your life. No map for your inner landscape.
Owning your path isn’t about always being right.
It’s about being true.
It’s about daring to stand by your choices, even when they don’t fit the pattern.
It’s about being able to say, “I followed my heart — and even if I fell, I fell on my own path.”
There’s a freedom in that which can’t be bought.
A freedom that comes only when you no longer need to be understood.
You Know. You Never Have to Ask.
It sounds almost too simple.
But it’s the essence of everything.
When you come home to yourself, to your inner voice, there are no longer right or wrong directions — only your direction.
You may doubt at times. You may stumble.
But you’ll always rise again — because you know where you’re heading.
You know when to let go.
You know when to take the next step.
You know when something is true — and when it isn’t.
And you’ll never again need to ask anyone what’s best for you.
Because you already know.
You always have.
By Chris...