With youth: How to get respect and yet live free?

The following is an excerpt from a samvaad (dialogue) session with Acharya Prashant.

Question (Q): How do I get a life in which I get respect, as well as I can live life my own way?

Acharya Prashant (AP): This is a desire that is entrenched in everybody’s mind, “I want respect and I also want to live on my own terms.”

This is very much possible but it is not possible in the way you think it to be possible. What you are asking for is possible, not only possible, it is your right. It is your right to be respected and also live freely. When you say, “I want to live on my own terms,” what you mean is that you want to live freely. Yes, it is possible. There are no constraints at all. There is no problem at all. Yes, it is possible that we be respected and live freely, but there is a small spoiler. It is not possible in the way we think about it. Let’s try to understand.

What does the word ‘respect’ mean? ‘Respect’ has two meanings. One is the conventional meaning, where respect is just a code of conduct. You go to your teacher and you say, “Good Morning”, you bow your head a little and it is considered as ‘respect’. Right? You do not argue with your parents and it is considered as ‘respect’. Right? When you are walking in front of a temple, you do not do a few things thing or you do a…