How to Escape the Matrix and Become Your Own Person

Ways to Escape the Matrix

Think for yourself and don’t blindly follow others. Don’t blindly follow the opinions of others—that’s how you end up like everybody else. Always keep an open mind and trust, but verify. In other words, when you’re offered a new piece of information or you encounter a new idea, look into it for yourself. This way, you’ll develop your own way of thinking that’s valid and authentic to you. Be careful about writing people off automatically! If a teacher gives you a piece of advice, for example, don’t just throw it away because you’re refusing to follow others. Just look into things for yourself.

Read books that challenge you and make you think. Always keep a book on hand and read like your life depends on it. Work your way through challenging stuff and always look for something that will open up your mind. By tackling books about history, art, religion, philosophy, and more, you’ll develop the chops you need to think your way through anything. Ask your teachers or professors for recommendations. Educators have the inside scoop on what books will really rock your world. Look for “outsider” texts that the traditional thinkers have written off. The Outlaw Bible of American Poetry or Howard Zinn’s A People's History of the United States, for example.

Detox from the apps to clear your mind, body, and soul. Take a break from social media by deleting the apps or temporarily locking your accounts. This will limit how much brainpower you dedicate to following trends or mindlessly scrolling so that you can interact more with the real world and grow as a person. There’s a lot of evidence this will also improve your sleep quality, too! There’s nothing wrong with being on social media per se, but if you want to deprogram yourself it’s important to stop feeding the algorithms that shovel content in front of you. That’s how you get out of the Matrix—don’t play its game!

Avoid consumerism. It’s difficult in our modern age to avoid using things to fill the empty spaces inside of us, but that’s why it’s so important to avoid this trap. Stop buying things mindlessly on Amazon, make sure you really need all of the subscriptions you have, and don’t rely on material goods to make you happy. This isn’t to say that you should avoid buying things you need! Just be mindful about it.

Question everything and take nothing for granted. Don’t make any assumptions and build your own theories. The world is a deeply complicated place, so get in the habit of asking “why?” Whether it’s religious belief, stories about your country’s origin, or something your mother told you when you were young, put everything under the microscope and look into it for yourself. The philosopher Rene Descartes famously questioned everything to determine what he could actually deduce about the universe on his own. He famously proved he couldn’t confirm anything was true other than himself: “I think, therefore I am.”

Self-reflect to take an inventory of who and what you are. Self-reflection is a great way to sharpen your self-awareness and cultivate the kind of focus and empathy you need to deprogram yourself. At least once a week, create a quiet space for yourself and dedicate 10-30 minutes for reflection. Free write about what you’re feeling about how things are going. Have you been pursuing your goals? Are you fulfilled? What should you (or can you) change? If you aren’t much of a writer, try recording your thoughts. So long as you’re documenting the sessions, you’re golden. The goal here is to track how you’re facing the world and thinking about yourself over time.

Make new friends with unique people. The more “different” your new pals are, the better. If you’re a self-described liberal, try hanging out with a conservative friend. Are you a metal head? Ask the local hip hop fan to hang out. By exposing yourself to people who are different from you, you’ll experience new things and grow as a person. Beyond that, you’ll buck the Matrix’s design which guides people towards only hanging out with their “own kind.” Remember, the Matrix isn’t some fake digital universe you’re trapped in. It is society itself. It’s the status quo and everything “normal.” If someone is different from you, they represent a chance to branch out and grow.

Practice mindfulness. Become a pillar of emotional well-being and calmness. Mindfulness is a way to cultivate self-awareness and gain total control over your mind. You can do this by practicing yoga to join your body and mind, or by meditating to foster your mental sharpness and build your emotional intelligence.

Watch out for confirmation bias. Stop yourself when you start working backwards. Confirmation bias is the natural human inclination to seek out or focus on information that already reinforces your beliefs. As tempting as it can be to lock in on the sources, ideas, and arguments that already support what you believe, the entire premise of “escaping the matrix” requires you to be joyful about looking for things that disprove you. For example, if you think it’s good to wake up early and you discover some factoid about how creative people are more likely to sleep in, don’t discount it right away! Look into the idea. Maybe even try it out to see how it feels.

Say “yes” to everything. You never know which experience will be the most valuable. By saying “yes” to every offer to hang out, do something, or try a new thing, you’ll open yourself up to new opportunities. You never know which tiny little ripple will create the spark you need to learn something important about yourself (or the world!).

Believe in your own power. Neo didn’t become “the one” until he believed it was true. You have to know, deep down in your heart, that you have the ability to carve out your own future. No force in the universe can keep you from controlling your destiny and you can do whatever you want to do. If you truly believe that deep down, then you’ve already escaped!

What is the Matrix?

The Matrix is a metaphor for the way things are designed to be. Society is built around all kinds of unwritten social norms, rules, etiquettes, and presumed facts. All of this socially constructed artifice is the Matrix. It’s the mainstream news, the popular opinion, and the assumed narrative. It’s certainly possible that we are living in a simulation of some kind (just like Neo in the Matrix films), but the odds seem low and you’d have no way of knowing anyway.

What does escaping the Matrix mean?

Escaping the Matrix means shedding all outside influence. Society wants you to behave a certain way, look a certain way, and think a certain way. But is that what you want? Escaping the Matrix means you’re shedding all of that outside influence to determine what you truly want deep in your soul. This doesn’t mean you have to reject things just based on the grounds that they’re popular. Maybe you really do think Taylor Swift is the jam! And if that is the case, own it!

How do you know if you escaped the Matrix?

If you have inner peace and know who you are, you escaped. Like every great guru, philosopher, and religious teacher throughout history, you’ll know you’re free when you can embrace who you are and speak your truth boldly and freely. If you feel a fight or discomfort in your soul, keep going. You’re almost there.

What comes after escaping the Matrix?

Your truest, most authentic life comes next! Once you’ve deprogrammed yourself and begun to think for yourself, you can go out and pursue the things you really want. This part of the journey will be entirely unique to you—nobody can tell you what to do or think. You’re free to pursue life as you see fit!