Contributed by Irene Watson

You may not know that I was born in Canada. So Independence Day for me isn’t just July 4th, but also July 1st. Of course, it’s wonderful for people to have freedom no matter what country they live in. So today and tomorrow, celebrate your independence. If anything is holding you back, find a way to free yourself.

We all have those voices that say we’re not good enough, that we can’t do something, or that we need someone to help us. A good way to be independent is to find something you hate doing because you don’t feel you’re very good at it. If you really need to ask for help, go ahead and ask, but take the time to learn how to do it for yourself. It can be a simple thing. Even simple things make us feel free and powerful.

Do you pump your own gas? A lot of people never pump their own gas. They never learned, and they are afraid to operate the gas pump. They never go to a self-serve station or let their spouse do it. Next time you go to the gas station, ask your spouse to teach you how to pump your gas. Then do it for yourself.

Do you always ask someone else to help you hang pictures because you’re afraid the pictures will end up crooked or you won’t measure right? Try to do it by yourself. If you put the nail in the wrong place, it’s always fixable later.

Other examples are fear of using the snowblower or lawnmower, making a speech in public, attending a party where you won’t know many people, or not buying exercise equipment because of what the checkout person at the store might think.

People don’t do most of the things I listed above because they are nervous about doing them. They fear doing them. But once you do them and you see how easy they are, you will laugh at the fear that held you back. As Marie Curie said, “Nothing in life is to be feared; it is only to be understood.”

Tackle the little things that hold you back from being independent. They’ll make you feel empowered. Then you can tackle the big things. Don’t let fear that you won’t fit in with the younger generation keep you from going back to college. Don’t let fear of what the neighbors might think keep you from painting your house purple, if you like purple. Don’t let fear of an accident keep you from driving. Don’t let fear of failure keep you from finding a positive relationship.

Remember your inalienable rights—Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. Make today your Independence Day. Claim the life, liberty, and happiness that are rightfully yours!

Irene Watson, MA, is author of The Sitting Swing: Finding Wisdom to Know the Difference, and co-editor of The Story that Must Be Told: True Tales of Transformation, and Authors Access: 30 Success Secrets for Authors and Publishers. She is a workshop leader, managing editor of Reader Views, and president of a non-profit Higher Power Foundation. Irene lives next to Barton Creek in Austin, TX, with her husband Robert.