Our history often shapes itself into a part of our identity. We judge humanity using the mistakes it has made in the past, and we have changed our world in the present to make sure that these mistakes do not repeat themselves. However, we have also learned that while we can judge mankind for its past behaviour as a collective body, for an individual, we can never assume that their past is the only truth about who they are in the present, especially in the case of the youth. This is why even the legal system has been arranged in a manner that ensures that juvenile offenders are rehabilitated instead of punished, and can lead a normal, happy life in the future.
Regardless of this fact, we often find ourselves judging our own abilities based on what we could and could not do in the past. We use our own mistakes to determine the extent of our abilities, often underestimating ourselves quite severely. We are often told that the only obstacle to our success is our own mind. To our amazement, we find that there are quite a few other factors affecting whether or not we achieve something. Nevertheless, there is some truth that lies in this statement. This is because strangely, how we see ourselves in the past can play the role of a rather large obstacle to the process of developing a very important skill – decision making.