We built this mess - and the scariest part is that we did it with our own beliefs.
Look around and you’ll hear the same tired storyline everywhere: people feel stuck, powerless, and cheated by a system they can’t control. But what if the real tyrant isn’t a government or an “evil” group? What if it’s the ideas living inside us—ideas that shape how we act before we even realize it?
One belief keeps showing up like a quiet disease: I’m not good enough. It sounds harmless at first. It’s just “maybe I’m not cut out for this.” It’s the way people lower their goals, shrink their dreams, and avoid risks that could actually change their lives. When you believe you’re unworthy, you stop pushing. You don’t apply. You don’t speak up. You wait for permission that never comes. And then - surprise - you wonder why nothing improves. Potential doesn’t vanish overnight. It gets slowly drained by resignation until it feels “normal.”
Another belief is just as damaging: life is a constant struggle and justice doesn’t exist. That belief doesn’t only describe reality - it manufactures it. If you assume you’ll be crushed, you stop trying. You blame others. You vent instead of building. You grow resentful at people who “got lucky,” even though you never challenged the conditions you claim are impossible to change. Cynicism turns into a culture of excuses, and excuses are the easiest fuel for corruption. Because when people stop expecting progress, powerful people can keep doing whatever they want.
Then there’s the way we talk about money. Some people treat wealth like it’s automatically evil, or they decide rich people must be corrupt. Sure, corruption exists - but suspicion can become a cage. If you believe money is poison, you stop thinking creatively about opportunities, saving, investing, starting businesses, or supporting solutions that could actually help communities. Instead of building, we fracture. Instead of improving, we tolerate inequity “because that’s how it is.”
Even our conversations about sex get polluted by shame. When sex is treated like something dirty or forbidden, people lose access to education, protection, and honest understanding. Shame doesn’t prevent harm - it hides it. It silences consent. It teaches the next generation to whisper instead of speak up, to hide instead of seek help. And that silence becomes part of the cycle of damage.
Religious beliefs can also become a trap if they promote fear over responsibility. If the message is “God will punish you” or “you’re powerless,” some people give up. Not because they’re weak, but because their beliefs taught them that action won’t matter. Faith is supposed to move you toward courage and accountability - not freeze you in resignation.
So how do we break the cycle? We start by confronting the inner beliefs that make surrender feel safe. We replace “I’m not worthy” with “I can improve and I deserve a shot.” We replace “nothing ever changes” with “I can learn, adapt, and help others change too.” We stop viewing life as something we endure and start treating it as something we build.
If enough of us shift what we believe, our communities will feel it. More people will try. More will create. More will talk honestly about money, ethics, consent, and responsibility. And the real lesson is simple and uncomfortable: progress doesn’t arrive like a miracle. It begins when we decide our thoughts will no longer be our excuse. It begins with one person choosing empowering beliefs - and then acting on them. One conversation. One decision. One brave step at a time.
#Kamalyan #OpinYon #Columnists