NPR's Hidden Brain By Sylvie Abate

One of my favorite radio programs is NPR’s Hidden Brain. In a recent episode, they explored something that feels so simple, yet so elusive: How do we figure out what we truly want to do with our lives? We are all born into a world already humming with expectations. Where to live, how to earn a living—these choices are rarely made in isolation. Parents, teachers, friends, society itself—they all nudge us, sometimes lovingly, sometimes unknowingly, onto paths that may not be our own.

For me, that nudge was toward music. I’m not entirely sure why, but the pull was undeniable. I had originally been interested in journalism, imagining a future shaped by stories and truth-telling. But during a college visit, an eager family member encouraged me to meet the Head of the Guitar Department—and just like that, I was auditioning. Would I have been happier as a journalism major? Maybe. It might have even been the wiser career move. But I don’t regret choosing music. Studying in the conservatory remains one of the most cherished chapters of my life—filled with a kind of creative immersion I’ll never forget.

Psychologist Ken Sheldon, who studies the science of authentic living, said something that stayed with me: "There are things we can do to make sure our choices align with our deepest values."

Some thoughts that stirred me during the podcast:

• So often, we choose the wrong goals for ourselves—not out of failure, but out of conditioning.

• We follow the loud voices of culture telling us what we should want, without stopping to ask what we want.

• We are immersed in a materialistic culture so deeply that it feels like the air we breathe.

• By the time we reach our twenties, the indoctrination is nearly complete.
  

The path of the songwriter offers a metaphor for self-discovery. Writing a song—at least for me—is not about chasing or forcing a melody into place. It’s about listening. Waiting. Trusting.

Often, the song already lives inside me, especially the lyrics. I sit with an idea for a while—turn it over in my mind, carry it with me, sometimes for days or weeks. It needs time to settle, to take root. That’s when something quiet and unseen begins to stir.

The creative process unfolds gently, almost mysteriously:

• First, a story arises—an emotion, a truth I want to express.

• Then comes the incubation. I don’t rush it. I let it live in the background of my mind, where something deeper begins to work.

• In that still space, my subconscious does its part.

• And then, when the time is right, the spark comes. The melody appears almost as if it was always meant for the lyrics. The words and music find each other.
  

It feels less like I’m writing the song and more like I’m uncovering it. As if it had been waiting all along—for me to get quiet enough to hear it.

Discovering who you are is also an ongoing act of creation, a living conversation between your conscious questions and your soul’s whispered answers.

So I have begun to ask myself: "What do I really want?"

Not the surface answers. Not the ones handed to me by the world. But the ones that rise from the deep well within me.

The answer, they say, lies not in striving—but in listening. Ask your heart. Then trusting your self enough to be still. The real answers come softly, carried by the winds of your own becoming.

Link to podcast: https://hiddenbrain.org/podcast/what-do-you-want-to-be

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Source: NPR, Who Do You Want to Be? #SylvieAbate