Chapter 03: Default Settings — Are You Living on Autopilot? (L1)
Chapter 3

Default Settings — Are You Living on Autopilot? (L1)

Decision Tool

Default Belief Audit

A simple journaling or thinking exercise to surface the scripts you’re running.

Step 1: Choose one belief you act on regularly — about success, love, safety, or identity.

Step 2: Ask:

  • Where did this come from?
  • What was the context back then?
  • Is it still relevant today?

Step 3: Complete this sentence:

“I used to believe ___ because ___. Now, I choose to believe ___.”

🟢 You don’t need to fight old beliefs. Just notice them — and gently update what no longer serves you.x`x`

Land it Well

Opening Hook

You didn’t choose everything you believe.
But you’re living like you did.

The Big Shift

Many of the decisions we call “ours” are actually echoes — of parents, teachers, society, even Instagram. They started shaping your choices before you knew you were making them.

And when you don’t pause to question them, they become your default settings — silent, automatic, and powerful.

Explain and Expand

Core Idea / Explanation

Imagine setting up a new phone. It works perfectly — but only because someone else decided the brightness, ringtone, and language. That’s how defaults work.

Now imagine never changing those settings — even when they don’t suit you.
That’s how life works for most people.

We grow up absorbing beliefs like:

  • Success = a stable job
  • Questioning elders is disrespectful
  • Risk is dangerous
  • Failure means shame

No one said these things outright. They were implied — through reactions, rewards, warnings.

You didn’t choose these.
But if you don’t question them, they choose for you.

And that’s the silent cost of autopilot living:
You start optimizing your life for beliefs that might not be yours.

Zoom Out

Default settings are useful — until they aren’t.
They helped you survive. Now it’s time to grow.

And growth starts with one quiet moment of clarity:

“This belief got me here. But is it taking me where I want to go next?”

You don’t have to burn everything down. Just begin editing the script.

Make Personal

Run a Belief Diagnostic

Pick one of these areas: Career. Money. Relationships. Risk. Identity.

Now ask:

  • What do I believe about this?
  • Where did that belief come from?
  • Does it still fit who I’m becoming?

Example:

“I believe I should never leave a secure job.”
Why? “Because my dad lost his business once, and we struggled.”
Do I still agree? “Maybe not. I want to grow — not just survive.”

This isn't about judging your past — it's about freeing your future.

Recap Box

Key Insight: Many beliefs we live by weren’t chosen — they were inherited.
Tool: Default Belief Audit — a self-check to help you examine and revise life scripts.
Why it matters: Awareness creates space. And in that space, new possibilities are born.

Encouraging Close

Your story isn’t written in stone — it’s written in choices.

The defaults you leave unquestioned will shape your path.
But the ones you examine?
They give you back the pen.