got freedom?

A few days ago I came across a friend's blog, where she happened to write something that has since then bugged me: "[...] should one choose to follow his/her arbitrary will (What do I want to do? Where do I want to go? What do I want to obtain?) or his/her self-determination (What should I do? Where should I go? What should I pursue? What is naturally best for my present state?)?"
This seemingly simple question only opens the way to a million other questions, in an endless chase for the ultimate answer. Arbitrary will appears to be the true form of freedom, for it allows us to pursue what we want and what we want to do, in a poignantly individualistic way (after all, any person should be allowed to do what he/she wants, or at least this seems to be the accepted truth nowadays) . What matters is what I want, hence I go after it.
According to Aristotle, though, this is a false kind of freedom, for it urges us to be dependent on what our "appetites" tell us - regardless of whether it is good or bad for us at that moment. The true form of freedom seems to be self-determination, when we are free from dependence and we are able not to be led by our appetites, our will or our desires. In this case we should be able to determine what is best for us at a given point in time, whether we should go one way or another, regardless of what our "appetites" tell us. But what is leading us then, if not out will, our desires, our dreams, our goals? Is it ever possible to be driven by something other than our desires, our dreams and our goals?
I think there is something else that should somehow guide us in our everyday decisions: compassion. Understanding. Empathy. Being aware of what is around us, of who is around us, should be part of our priorities, as well as pursuing our dreams and desires. Because we can pursue all the dreams and goals we want, but it is necessary to bear in mind that there's always a price to pay. If we follow our desires blindly, regardless of what is around us, most likely we'll end up hurting someone in the process. I follow my "appetites", my goal(s), and I deliberately ignore every obstacle on the way, whether it is an unpleasant situation or a person who stands between me and the realization of my dream. It is possible to avoid this potential manslaughter by keeping in mind the consequences of our actions, thus asking ourselves: "I want to do such and such, but how should I go about it?" The conditional tense somehow leaves an opening for doubt, for questioning ourselves, to recognize the existence of possible consequences that necessarily follow our actions.
Each one of our actions has a repercussion on people around us, whether big or small. It is within the realm of our capabilities not to hurt those people while we pursue our goals. It is a form of respect, the act of considering other people's feelings, and to acknowledge that, if we want to rush toward our goal, and if we want to embrace the (not necessarily bad) individualistic persona, at least we are the only ones suffering the consequences of our actions.
I am not saying that this is easy, or that this is the only way to go about things. It is extremely hard to consider each and every possible implication of our utterances and our actions. It is energy-consuming to pay attention to all the people around us, to be aware of their feelings so as not to hurt them (we'll talk about lies some other time).
Probably this is the truest form of freedom: to be able to say, in the end, that I got to a certain point (or at least close to it) but without leaving casualties on my path. Personally, it would be my most cherished achievement.