You
will come across several books in life that are powerful enough to show
you a better way to live and make a substantial shift in your thinking
if you are lucky.
One book that did this for me is The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom, by don Miguel Ruiz.
I
internalized the ideas within its pages, made them a daily practice,
became more aware of my thought patterns, and my life changed. When
before I was struggling with people I had to deal with, after
implementing The Four Agreements, my life became a lot more simple with a lot less energy wasted.
Even if you make one small change daily, you can improve your life.
The
book found me just when I needed it. I’ve practiced its knowledge and
wisdom over the years. It helps that I reread it at least once a year.
Here, we move on to the last, but most crucial agreement, Always Do Your Best.
One
piece of advice I repeatedly received from both my parents growing up
was, “always do your best.” It instantly made me feel less anxious when I
heard this mantra before an algebra test or a piano recital. Before any
stressful event that required me to perform, whether it was a Lacrosse
game or an economics exam, I would repeat to myself,
do your best do your best do your best
The refrain gave me the confidence to tackle whatever challenge I was afraid to face.
can
only truly work if you do your best, day in and day out, week in and
week out, year in and year out, and will change your life if practiced
and maintained.
Don’t start practicing The Four Agreements
with the assumption that you will always be impeccable with your word.
You won’t. Your habits are firmly rooted, as is your mindset, but you
can do your best from circumstance to circumstance.
Don’t
expect that you will never take anything personally again, or make
another assumption, you will, but you can do your best not to.
When
you practice the last agreement, “Always Do Your Best,” it allows the
other three agreements to become more deeply ingrained and useful. So,
under any circumstance, always do your best.
And your best will change depending on your circumstances.
Allow for your best to be different at different times
Your best will change depending on your headspace and body, and what is happening on a particular day.
Screenshot by Author
Your best will be different when you are sick than when you are healthy and energized.
Your best will change depending on what life throws at you.
Your best when you have a sick child at home will differ from your best when your family is healthy.
But you will know when you aren’t giving your best in each circumstance.
When
you don’t do your best, you will open yourself up to feelings of guilt,
frustration, regret. But when you’ve done your best, you will know
you’ve done your best. When your inner critic tries to judge you then,
you can shut it down with, “I did my best.”
What doing your best means
You
take action. Ruiz says, “expressing who you are is taking action. You
have many great ideas in your head, but what makes the difference is the
action. Without action upon an idea, there will be no manifestation, no
results, and no reward.” When you always do your best, you take action.
You enjoy the action. Doing your best is taking action because you
love it. Don’t expect a reward from the action; take action just for the
sake of taking action.
The best way to live in gratitude is to always to do your best.
Let
go of mistakes and judgments about how you handled the past. It is
gone, there is nothing you can about the past. Let it go and focus on
new habits to make the future promising. When you surrender and let go
of the past, you allow yourself to be fully alive. Enjoy now.
Learn
to say NO. Say NO to those things you don’t want to do. Say NO to the
non-essentials in your life, those tasks that aren’t adding value, but
rob you of your energy. Say YES to those tasks that fill your life with
gratitude, joy, and value.
Be present when you’re doing the things you love.
What you will gain from always doing your best
You have self-acceptance.
You will become a master of transformation.
When you do your best always, over and over again, you will change, your life will change, your perspective will change.
You become the master of your mind and actions.
You will break these agreements over and over again but begin again the next day.
At
first, it will be challenging to break a habit, but the more you
practice being present and doing your best in each moment, the easier it
becomes.
You become the ruler of your life.
Doing
your best helps you stay in the moment, the awareness of your thoughts,
words, deeds, and actions grows. You pay attention to what you do and
what you say to others. You will be more present with those you love
Letting go of the past is allowing yourself to be fully alive in the moment, and enjoy the only time that is, which is now.
How this agreement will shift your life:
You
will be more loving to yourself. Practicing self-love will open you up
and increase your feelings of love toward your family and friends
.
Your life will have more flow, and you won’t feel stuck, as if you are
going against a wave fighting you. There will be more flow in your
day-to-day.
Things you want will come more easily.
Just reading The Four Agreements
won’t be the magic bullet, and significant change doesn’t happen
overnight. If you break an agreement, begin again tomorrow, and the next
day.
Make
these agreements a daily practice until they feel like they are part of
your being. The first three agreements will only work if you do your
best.
You won’t always be impeccable with our word; you will slip up. But you can do our best.
You will take things personally sometimes, but you can do your best not to.
You’ll make an assumption every once in a while, but you can do your best not to.
If
your resolve is strong to make these agreements a part of you, through
habit, miracles will happen in your life, and transformation will be
noticeable.
Do not be concerned
about the future; keep your attention on today, and stay in the present
moment. Just live one day at a time. Always do your best to keep these
agreements, and soon it will be easy for you. Today is the beginning of a
new way of living. — don Miguel Ruiz
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