The 4 Agreements:

Don Muguel Ruiz unlocked ancient wisdom of the Toltecs in 1997 when he published "The Four Agreements." The book claims to create personal freedom, and when following these tenets to the best of my ability, I can testify truth in that. But freedom from what?

Inertia in life - the inability to move forward- many times involves being bound by fear. Fear of consequence, fear of impressions, fear of failure. Ruiz explains that taking 4 things into your own hands releases the bondage of fear and frees our minds of distraction, worry and fear.

Much of this draws on the adage of only focusing on what you can control and releasing the rest, but Ruiz makes it practical.

1 - Be impeccable with your word. Never use words to cause harm or fear with people. Speak honestly and kindly.

2 - Don't Make Assumptions. If we don't know why something happened or why someone said what they did, summon the courage to ask or find out. . In absence of that courage, our minds conjure all sorts of reasons (mostly negative) which creates a cycle of distraction, worry, and overthinking.

3 - Don't take Anything Personally - become immune to the actions of others by realizing what they say and fo comes from where they are - not you. Stop the endless suffering!

4 - Always Do Your Best - Like agreement 1 where we choose the best words, here we choose our best actions.

If you find yourself having difficulty with agreements 2 and 3, think about why others' opinions are so important to you. If you use impeccable words and do your best as 1 and 4 suggest, be confident in your ability to move forward. If uncertain about something, ask!