I was walking down the street when a store sign caught my eye: “Put fun between your legs.”
My mind went exactly where you think it did.
Sex.
Immediate. Automatic. No pause.
And that’s when I realized —that’s exactly what they wanted. The message wasn’t accidental. It was engineered. Designed to trigger a reaction before thought even had a chance to catch up.
And it worked. They sold bicycles btw.
Which got me thinking about how powerful —and predictable— our minds can be.
Words aren’t neutral. They come pre-loaded.
Say “fake news” and suddenly it’s not just information it’s distrust, bias, division.
Say “AI” and people think either the future or the end of humanity.
Say “influencer” and depending on who you are, it’s either admiration or eye-rolls.
We don’t just hear words. We inherit meaning. And sometimes, we don’t even question it.
Brands understand this better than anyone.
We don’t search anymore…. we Google.
We don’t copy…. we Xerox.
We don’t edit photos…. we Photoshop.
We don’t call a ride…. we Uber.
We don’t sing badly… we ChihSang.
Language has been shaped so deeply that companies become actions.
And actions become habits.
And habits become default thinking.
The mind is powerful like that. It connects. It shortcuts. It fills in gaps instantly.
But it’s also limited.
Because once a connection is made, we rarely stop to ask if it’s still true or if it was ever ours to begin with.
That sign made me laugh at first. Then it made me pause. Because if something as simple as a phrase can steer my thoughts that quickly —what else am I reacting to without realizing?
How many opinions are truly mine?
How many reactions are just conditioning?
How often do I pause before assigning meaning?
Maybe awareness is the real skill.
Not stopping thoughts but noticing them.
Not controlling everything but questioning more.
Because the world will always try to plant ideas.
But I still get to decide which ones take root.
And maybe that’s where real freedom begins.