And so the story goes.

I was talking to my dear friend last night and parts of it I liked... Thought it was really rather good actually.

Feelings are not a barometer of life, neither are they a barometer of good or bad, happiness or sadness. It is a barometer of the unconscious mind's past experience and a bit of genetic programming. As such, in my opinion, self justification may not be necessary as it won't change anything. But rather, experience shapes who we are, our feelings, and that translates to how we act and react. All done unconsciously. Self justification would only be putting into words what we have always been doing. Or eerily,
"Because we all do and say things that truly surprise us, we must construct(fabricate) a narrative(story) that makes sense of those behaviors that contradict with our interim" - Kevin Hogan

What I think is that, perhaps it's not about talking about it. Saying what you can and cannot do, will or will not do. Experience would let you discover yourself. Dangerous thing about this is that values, morals must be developed to a certain extent before embarkation. Though no one should be afraid to change viewpoint, there has to be certain level of self imposed self restraint.

Still hung on

I am thinking, therefore I exist./
I think, therefore I am./
Cogito ergo sum.

- Descartes / St. Augustine