The Four Agreements
Has anyone ever read this book? I am not a very spiritual person but this book has been extremely helpful in my daily life.
The Four Agreements are based on Toltec wisdom and is basically about self-actualization. This book helped me understand people a little better and made my life a little less stressful, so I just thought I would share. Because, lord knows, we could all use a little less stress.
The Four Agreements are the rules, or agreements, the Toltecs believed you should make with yourself in order to lead a balanced life. They are as follows:
1 - Be Impeccable With Your Words
2 - Don't Take Anything Personally
3 - Don't Make Assumptions
4 - Always Do Your Best
The first agreement is a variant of the old "if you don't have anything nice to say..." idea. It takes it one step further by saying that you pollute your own being by speaking ill of others. I think everyone can attest that when you bitch and moan, your stress level rises because you are rethinking that moment in your head as you are rehashing it. If we better understand the premise behind certain events, we can skip the rehash and can ultimately be more peaceful with ourselves.
The second agreement is just what it says. However, it expounds on it by saying that if you listen to whatever unkind words someone has said about you, it tells you something about them. When someone criticizes someone for being too skinny or too fat it's a reflection on them, not that other person. Perhaps someone is jealous of the skinny person or feels threatened by the fat person that is not ashamed of their body. People's comments are a reflection of themselves and not a reflection on those they are speaking about.
The third agreement is pretty simple as well. "Assuming makes and ass out of u and me" right? But it is definitely a rule that helps one in life. Really, what they are saying here is, you never know unless you ask.
The fourth agreement I believe to be the most powerful. Always do your best. I try to ask myself at the end of everyday "Did I do my best?" and because I am human and my worst critic, the answer is always no. I could have tried harder at work, I could have helped that woman across the street, I shouldn't have eaten that cookie, etc. But it's a good thing to ask yourself and a good way to monitor your direction in life.
Now, I don't claim to have explained all the concepts correctly but this is the idea. I just wanted to tell you all about the book. I highly recommend it. To this day, I still have to read it over every once in a while but the concepts have definitely helped in certain situations.
Again, the book is called The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. It's small and a quick read. Tell me what you think or weigh in if you've read it.
The Four Agreements are based on Toltec wisdom and is basically about self-actualization. This book helped me understand people a little better and made my life a little less stressful, so I just thought I would share. Because, lord knows, we could all use a little less stress.
The Four Agreements are the rules, or agreements, the Toltecs believed you should make with yourself in order to lead a balanced life. They are as follows:
1 - Be Impeccable With Your Words
2 - Don't Take Anything Personally
3 - Don't Make Assumptions
4 - Always Do Your Best
The first agreement is a variant of the old "if you don't have anything nice to say..." idea. It takes it one step further by saying that you pollute your own being by speaking ill of others. I think everyone can attest that when you bitch and moan, your stress level rises because you are rethinking that moment in your head as you are rehashing it. If we better understand the premise behind certain events, we can skip the rehash and can ultimately be more peaceful with ourselves.
The second agreement is just what it says. However, it expounds on it by saying that if you listen to whatever unkind words someone has said about you, it tells you something about them. When someone criticizes someone for being too skinny or too fat it's a reflection on them, not that other person. Perhaps someone is jealous of the skinny person or feels threatened by the fat person that is not ashamed of their body. People's comments are a reflection of themselves and not a reflection on those they are speaking about.
The third agreement is pretty simple as well. "Assuming makes and ass out of u and me" right? But it is definitely a rule that helps one in life. Really, what they are saying here is, you never know unless you ask.
The fourth agreement I believe to be the most powerful. Always do your best. I try to ask myself at the end of everyday "Did I do my best?" and because I am human and my worst critic, the answer is always no. I could have tried harder at work, I could have helped that woman across the street, I shouldn't have eaten that cookie, etc. But it's a good thing to ask yourself and a good way to monitor your direction in life.
Now, I don't claim to have explained all the concepts correctly but this is the idea. I just wanted to tell you all about the book. I highly recommend it. To this day, I still have to read it over every once in a while but the concepts have definitely helped in certain situations.
Again, the book is called The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz. It's small and a quick read. Tell me what you think or weigh in if you've read it.
posted by Nicole at 1:12 AM
2 Comments:
Is there an example of how one of these four agreements has helped you in your life recently?
Absolutely! It helps me deal with my boss all the time. When he yells, I listen to why he is yelling. Many times his yelling has nothing to do with me, but it has everything to do with him. He might say "You didn't give me X and you made me look stupid in the meeting!!!!" He is mad because he was embarrassed but not because I didn't give him the document (which he probably never asked me for). I used to get upset, go into my office and have a good cry but I realized it's not about me. It gave me sanity.
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