People like to be right -
But the fear of being wrong is even stronger.

Did your horoscope tell you something was going to happen and then it did?

Or did something happen because your horoscope told you it would?

In other words, did you change your behavior to intentionally make the prediction happen?

I was reading an article in Inc. Magazine, "For Gen Z, the Career Grind is Dead. They See Things Differently in 1 Important Way", and it talked about "Fear of invalidity".

That reminded me of the conversation we had on The Digital Download (Feb. 10, 2023, Leading Through Change or Crisis, with special guest Craig Neal - The Collaborator®). Initially we were talking about personality tests and career assessments.

 "... both of these [two specific tests] were bogus tests because I could get you to change your answer and therefore change the outcome..."

After taking such tests, are we expressing certain traits and behaviors because that's who we are and the test detected it, or are we expressing these traits and behaviors because that's who the test told us we are and we don't want to be wrong?

Are we pursuing careers because that's what we think we're supposed to do?

There's a real danger in some of these tests. They can have a significant influence on the test taker.

Later in that Digital Download episode I briefly mentioned, "... two very strong words, put together, 'I am' and anything after it..."

It stayed with me. Later that day I wrote -

"I am"

Two very powerful words.

Just 3 letters.

Don't accept from ANYONE what they tell you that you are.

"You are a [insert demeaning term here]."

"You are a [well-meaning but misguided term here]."

Because the thing is, when we accept that term internally, we start to live it externally. And we really shouldn't wear something if it doesn't fit.