The Four Agreements
Summary: The Four Agreements draws on the long tradition of the Toltecs, an ancient, indigenous people of Mexico, to show you that we have been domesticated from childhood, how these internal, guiding rules hurt us and what we can do to break and replace them with a new set of agreements with ourselves.
His 1997 book The Four Agreements spent eight years on the New York Times bestseller list, selling over six million copies and spreading these four guiding principles to live by:
Be impeccable with your word.
Don’t take anything personally.
Don’t make assumptions.
Always do your best.
1. Be Impeccable With Your Word. Keep your integrity when using words. Try to be true in what you say without compromising. You shouldn’t agree with ideas that are against gossiping. The words should be used to spread love and goodness!
2. Don’t Take Anything Personally. Gain immunity over other people’s opinions about you. You shouldn’t consider, agree or be influenced by other people’s comments or gossips about you. Paying attention to what others say about you will make you a victim, so stop the needless suffering.
3. Don’t Make Assumptions. In order to clarify situations, to bring light to conflicts, you should have the courage to ask questions and also express your thoughts. Communication is the key to avoiding misunderstanding
4. Always Do Your Best. Doing your best depends entirely on you. It will not always be the same. For example, you can be sick, that will probably make you give less, but the author’s advice is to do your best no matter the situation. Doing your best will improve your life and help others.
I realize these sound basic, even prosaic but there’s incredible power in beginning to practice these agreements in our daily personal and professional lives!