Pete's Checking Out "The Four Agreements"

"I first heard about The Four Agreements when a college basketball coach used it as a motivational tool for each player on his team. The team ended up overachieving, going deep into the NCAA Tournament, so perhaps there may be something to these Four Agreements. Here they are...

1. Be impeccable (without sin, faultless, flawless) with your word. Don't lie to yourself and don't lie to others. Clear communication is essential to your well-being and to the well-being of others.

2. Don't take anything personally. If somebody says to you "Hey, you got a big nose" and you run off to get a rhinoplasty, you will be buying into someone else's dream of what a nose ought to look like and all of their prior socialization as pertaining to the pulchritude of the nose. Live your own dream.

3. Don't make assumptions. If you make assumptions without having any expertise, you won't question your own premises and you won't ask questions of others. Chances are you'll be vulnerable to gossip and false information. 

4. Always do your best. Sounds simple, as all these agreements do, but the author reminds us that this isn't always so. Pay attention to those times when you aren't doing your best, you're making quick assumptions, you're taking things personally, and when your word is lacking.

 Using the Four Agreements takes practice, a lifetime of practice, but I can certainly see its potential."

--Pete