By examining our own habits (and individual actions), we can look at how the choices we make impact the people and institutions around us. For instance, growing up going to school, most of us probably had some classes we liked more and others we liked less. Was this simply an issue of the subject matter? More so than this, we have teachers—some are more effective than others— as well as our classmates who "make or break" our experience. Some class might have been very nice to be in not because the "material" was interesting or engaging, but because the classroom offered a "platform" to make friends, learn from mistakes without unduly strict punishment, and so on.
I've been to vending machines
Why would anybody use a vending machine? An automatic box to feed money to large corporations—for products that are likely not very good for you. Yet I have used vending machines many times. Why is this?
Lack of planning/preparation
One reason one might use a vending machine is because adequate prepartions were not made. For example, understanding that you will want something to eat at a lunch break at the office, why go to the vending machine and choose among those choices? A moment of reflection will reveal that with a little bit of planning you have many more, and better options.
The ritual of going to a vending machine, looking at the glowing lights, pondering what will be appetizing...
While this may be temporarily entertaining/engaging, I doubt many of us reflect back on our time in front of vending machines as particularly good experiences. Rather, we became enchanted by those glowing rectangles and settled for a worse option than we could have had if instead we had used our minds to set up a better system before.
Lack of self-control
Suppose you did pack yourself a nice lunch, but then stumbled across a vending machine. Impulsively, pulling out the wallet, searching for payment, we indulge ourselves in some secret eating. 1
Lying awake at 3 AM, do I say "drinking that energy drink was a really good idea"?
Small choices are not without consequences and the sooner we begin to learn from our errors—rather than ignoring or justifying—we can become less confused.
Changing ourselves first
The modus operandi of the modern "activist" is to rage at the world for institutional change. With the vending machine example from personal experience, I aimed to show how even seemingly small/simple things we do can be instrumental in "fueling the beast"—first the passions within ourselves, and then through that, the world which responds to our requests.
As we notice the effects of evil in the world, the politicians market to us to vote this way or vote that way to make change. I don't think this is how change happens, though maybe some laws will get passed and stuff.
Rather, by taking control of our thoughts (and through that, our actions) we become the vessels by which "things get better".