GOAL SETTING
A happy woman enjoying the peace of having rules I live by mantra/credit/Jill Wellington
‘Rules I Live by’
Life
is beautiful, especially when you have a ‘rules I Live by mantra.’ These rules
guide your everyday activities. Your whole life operation. There is an element
of sweetness that comes with having a ‘rules I live by’ plan in your life. The
rules put you in charge. They make you the leader of your own life. They hold
you accountable. And set standards for you. You must live within certain
parameters. You cannot just be all over. You need to be specific. You need to
be you. You need to define you. You must state your values. Things that matter
to you. You must decide how you would like to live your life. And do things
that are only you. The rules keep societal influences away from you. They give
you an opportunity to interrogate yourself. ‘Rules I live by’ philosophies help
you, find you. The rules are personal and contain things you would like to
implement and practice every day.
Philosophies that define you. Rules that
address you. Things that you would like to see stick and shape your entire
life. Therefore, when you sit down to formulate these rules, you must think
about everything in your life. For example, the type of person you would like
to become. How you would like to live your life. Values that define you. The
rules carry a personal aspect that highlights your perception of life.
What matters. The rules are about you,
not anyone else. These rules put you in charge. They make you the head of your
life. The ultimate decision-maker. And ruler of your kingdom. But again, there
is a kicker. Being in charge is a lot of responsibility. A responsibility that
requires wisdom. Wisdom to help you be on the right path most of the time.
Wisdom in your decision-making. You need to make progress.
And
as the leader of your life, you need pathways that get you that progress. You
cannot make progress without wisdom. Without good thinking. You need maturity.
You need objectivity. You basically need to be an adult. This is the role of
‘rules I live by’ rules. They are supposed to help you define yourself. There
are 26 letters in the alphabet. These rules help you to be only one of those
letters, not all of them. If, you are A for example, you define the
characteristics of A, not B. Therefore, A needs to know who he/she is. You need
to know you. Society says a lot of things about you. But you need to scale down
and talk about you in a personal level. Talk about things that are you. Things
that cannot be found in another person who is not you. ‘Rules I live by’ rules
call you to be specific. Just you.
The
ability to define yourself not according to societal stereotypes and
expectations, but according to what you think defines you as an individual.
Back in my life, I made similar rules. I wrote those rules 12 years ago. Back
then, I cannot fully admit that I knew what I was doing. But I wrote 20 rules
that I live by. The rules contained certain specific elements about me. They
addressed my relationship with a higher being, talked about my character,
values, my body, my mind and heart, my relationships with other people.
Regulations within my reach, meaning of time, the environment I find myself in,
modesty, and how I should approach life as a whole. The rules covered a wide
range of things. Things that matter to me. I thought about all those things
before formulating the 20 rules. I have been observing and implementing them
ever since and I am shocked. I am shocked that these simple rules have shaped
and impacted my life in a level I did not anticipate.
The
person that I have become. And the way I approach life and situations around my
life. I mean, the 20 rules are deeply ingrained in life right now. I am proud
that I made these rules early. I am proud that they have played a critical role
in keeping me accountable. I have navigated the worst phases of my life just
because I had some rules somewhere. They remind me of who I am not. So, every
time I find myself doing things that are not me, the rules pull me back. They
keep me in check. They remind my values. They teach me to practice what I wrote
down. They keep me sane. Last year, I found my original notes of the same rules.
I could not believe it. I saw everything that I live out loud now in those
notes. My life is so simplified. I am unburdened. I am free. I live with no
loads on my shoulders. I am saved.
And
I have lessons for you. You deserve something like ‘Rules I live by.’ Stereotypes
confuse people a lot. People live their lives with a lot of burdens. Burdens
brought by societal stereotypes. Unrealistic expectations. Stereotypes teach
people to behave and act in certain ways. Unrealistic ways. Ways aimed at
pleasing. Inauthentic ways. Having ‘rules I live by guideline untangles you. It
frees you from senseless habits. The rules help your truth. Your truth is very
different from mine. Your uniqueness is what these rules aim to bring out in
you. You don’t have to care about what people think about you. You don’t have
to please anyone. Live your acentric truth. Don’t play safe. Don’t play to win.
Just play the game. Enjoy the game.
Simplification
The
mere fact that ‘rules I live by’ rules focus on you means that a lot of junk is
thrown out. The rules help you to get rid of all things that are not you. The
half-truths you have learned your whole life. The lies. Pretenses. Mediocrity,
and everything in-between that is not you is swept away. Your life becomes easy
to manage. Your head becomes lighter. You think clearly. You see clearly. You
become less bothered by what other people say or think about you. You focus on
being the best you. You focus on nurturing traits and character that enrich
you. Everything becomes you not the distortions around you. You see yourself
better. You set expectations for you. And write down rules that make you
resourceful as you. The holistic nature of these rules, helps you to look in
every direction of your life. You get out a lot of mess.
Developing
a ‘rules I live by’ guide simplifies every area of your life. You begin to do
things that benefit you. You start prioritizing your needs. You narrow down
your life to exact things that you need. You cut your coat according to your
size. There are no burdens. There are no loads. It is just you and things that
matter in life. Stereotypes no longer run your life. You come out of untruths.
You gain clarity. You become a better person. An authentic person. A person
that is clear from the beginning. There are no masks. You are the same person
at midnight and midday. There are no double standards. After all, you just
defined yourself. You become unapologetic. The lesser you care about outside
opinions, the sweeter your life becomes. You accomplish a lot with such goals
in place. You are simply in charge.
Grounding
Grounding
is the icing of developing a ’rules I live by’ strategy. You get grounded. And
there is nothing as good as, you grounding yourself. Knowing what to do, and
what not to do. Knowing what is good for you, and what is not good for you.
Knowing, which people to let in, and which ones to root out. You will love this
kind of freedom. Freedom that gets you only what you need. Things that benefit
you. Things that create milestones for you. Things that make you good. Things
that create development. Things that impact you positively. The grounding you
get from creating rules you live by is nurturing. It is healing. It is
liberating. It helps you avoid a lot of unnecessary battles because you know
your boundaries. You cannot trespass. You cannot step on the toes of others. You
are not a hot mess. Just ‘good trouble.’
You
are always in check. You are always accountable. Your common sense is always
on. You are aware of your environment. You see life clearly. You understand
life. You understand people. You understand your position in life. You cannot
hurt other people. Your rules teach you how to behave. You are grounded. They
remind you when you undermine human dignity. They call you when you break laws.
Your life is defined. Your life flows in one direction. You know, which ways to
follow. Life is good. You get to know your purpose. You get to live your
purpose. You make good progress. You don’t destruct. You take action. You solve
problems. You don’t entertain failure. You stop circumstances from telling you
what to do. You challenge circumstances. You defy odds because you know your
value and what you deserve.
Consciousness
‘Rules
I live by’ rules make you conscious. You always live alive. You are aware. You
are sensible. You live in the moment. You know what is happening around you.
You understand your environment. You know you. And there is no way you will
engage in things that you are not aware of. You approve everything you engage
into. You are in charge. You make difficult decisions. You are alive. There is
no pretense. You can differentiate things. You can tell situations. You know
what you are doing. If, you are destroying something, you surely know you are
damaging something. Your level of consciousness just improves when you
eventually write the rules that you want to live by. I have witnessed and
enjoyed these attributes. Your life looks so different, when you state the kind
of person you are or want to become. You need this consciousness. We all need
to be conscious people. The future needs conscious people. Be the future.
.webp)
.webp)
Comments