I hope you have enjoyed reading A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom, A Toltec: The Four Agreements by don Miguel Ruiz with the Darren Kavinoky Book Club. As I like to say, it’s more than a book, it’s a guide to a way of life and a mindset of successful people.
As we finish our first book, I realize that the month of May has flown by as if it is on it’s own high speed Internet connection! Graduations are happening at schools all over the country and as spring comes to a close and summer approaches, we think about new opportunities that await us all. Where have we been? Where are we going? What legacy will we leave behind? It seems like a perfect time to make some new agreements with ourselves…
Because this first book is so personal, I have decided to ask you to post any questions you may have with #DKBookClub rather than create a forum for debate. I think a more personal response to your questions is a better way for me to engage with you on this book. I promise to reply to as many questions as I can! There is not one way to interpret this book, that is the point, it is personal to you. I don’t want anyone to feel judged by another’s interpretation. That would go against the whole point of this book!
My thoughts and application of some of the lessons learned from reading The Four Agreements don Miguel Ruiz, are just that–they are mine. You may have taken away something entirely different from reading this book.
I would love to hear how this book has made a positive change in your life and hope you will share with me a situation when you made a different choice because of a new agreement you have made with yourself or a new agreement you have made with yourself.
Next month as we move into a book that is a bit juicier, we will create a more open forum for group discussion. That’s your cliff hanger to see what new book we announce tomorrow!
My takeaways of The Four Agreements are clear:
1. Stay positive. In life, especially when things are looking pretty bleak. You find more answers when you flip problems around and live them in the moment like they are the great memory they will become.
2. Be you. Every day you waste worrying about what others think about who you are or what you want to become is one day further away you are from grabbing the brass ring. And that truly is the brass ring–finding yourself and succeeding at being you living without fear of judgement pursuing your dreams is the ultimate achievement.
3. Ask questions. I like to think of it as personal wi-fi. I can keep my network closed and surround myself with only my own programmed net (and sometimes I do!), or I can open up my wi-fi and see what others are thinking about. Rather than assuming I know, I ask. I read. I look around to see how other people may see things.
4. Do your best. Don’t do it for me or for your kids or your spouse, do it for you. Be your best you because frankly, life is less enjoyable when you are going at something half-heartedly. Make the best cup of coffee in the morning, turn in the best report you can deliver, leave your office knowing you gave the day your best shot. When you get home, allow yourself the enjoyment of knowing you lived the day impeccably.
Live like you are the DJ
Finally, I hope you close this book with the pages highlighted and knowing there is comfort in returning to those inspiring passages. Enjoy your life. Take ownership for your choices and find freedom in living life your way. Live like you are the DJ (I picture myself in those cool headphones in front of huge crowd) and you choose the music! Make your life to-do list AKA soundtrack and start PLAYING it NOW!
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Darren is an accomplished TV personality, attorney, interventionist, keynote speaker, and 'misbehavior expert' who appears constantly on countless TV and radio shows.