Looking for something else this weekend, I stumbled upon my personal commandments. I wrote them almost two years ago, stealing the idea from Project Blog.

Personal commandments are different from goals or resolutions. They’re more the principles by which you live your life, the blue print from which you can determine things like goals and resolutions.

Gretchen has twelve; I have five, because I can’t possibly keep track of twelve. (I suspect five may be too many.)

  1. Be j
    This is harder than it sounds. Life is full of people who are dying to tell us what we want, what we need, who we are, what we should do. I have to disentangle myself periodically, breathe, eat a little cheesecake, remember who I am, then head back out into the wild, wild world.
  2. Be present
    Because only in the moment can I be curious and alive and awake and awed. Everything that ever happens to me, happens now.
  3. Act how I want to feel
    I should do a whole post on this sometime. It’s one of the most powerful lessons I’ve learned in the last two years. Feelings follow actions. Act brave, happy, forgiving, calm, confident, and see what happens.
  4. Love
    Even when it’s scary, even when it’s hard. There is nothing more worth the risk of being hurt.
  5. Write fearlessly
    Which is really part of being j.

I think if I live by these commandments, I’ll find what I’m looking for… even if I’m not sure what, exactly, that is… yet.

What are your commandments?

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