The 7 Rules
of Life

Mirjam Stoffels

I am one of those people that tend to post a large amount of inspirational quotes on my Facebook page. And if you know me, you know that I’m not just posting them for the sake of posting them. I really am that annoyingly optimistic and positive!

Not only do I put them out there for others to enjoy, but I feel like the messages tend to stick a bit harder when I take the time to post them. Learn by teaching, so to say…

Looking for inspiration for the blogpost for this morning I stumbled across an old post called ’7 Cardinal Rules For Life’ that seemed to really resonate with my followers at that time. So I decided to write a piece about that today!

 
Here they are: the seven cardinal rules for life!

 
#1
Make peace with your past
Make peace with your past so it won’t screw up the present. Are you haunted by something that happened in your past? Whether someone wronged you or you made a decision you regret, forgiveness is what you do for yourself, not for other people. When you forgive, it doesn’t mean that you approve of what’s happened. It means that you’re giving yourself permission to move on with your life.

 
#2
What others think of you is none of your business
One of the highest places you can get to is being independent of the good opinions of other people. How much time have you spent wondering, or even worrying, what others think of you? What else could you’ve been doing with that mental energy? Focusing on your work. Playing with your kids. Next time you catch yourself thinking about what someone else is thinking about you remind yourself ‘it is none of my business’. Focus on doing your best rather than question yourself if others think you are good enough.

 
#3
Time heals almost everything
Give it time… Time will heal the wounds created in your hart through words or deeds by friends or relative. But you need to give time time. If you look back your life you’ll see that many people who gave trouble are no longer around. Most of the problems you were facing back then are gone now. How long do you have to wait? There is no set time for any particular painful issue… You’ll get over it when you choose to put it behind you and move on!

 
#4
Don’t compare yourself to others
Comparing yourself to others is the best way to throw your self-esteem down the drain. There will always be those who are ‘better’ than you, and those who are ‘worse’ than you. People are born to be different. No two of us are the same. Even identical twins are different from each other. There will always be room for improvement, because nobody is perfect. Not on the outside nor on the inside. And don’t judge others. You have no idea what their journey is all about.

 
#5
Stop thinking so much
One of the best tips for getting things done is simply to stop thinking and start doing. Don’t get lost in thinking. It is alright not to know the answers. They will come to you when you least expect it. Keep overthinking from overtaking your life!

 
#6
Take charge of your happiness
No one is in charge of your happiness, except you. Did you know that you can actually exercise your brain to increase happiness? Neuroplasticity proves that with certain practices, the brain can change. Positive thinking really does change your brain. In a real physical way. It means that our thoughts can change the structure and function of our brains. Repetitive positive thought and positive activity can rewire your brain and strengthen brain areas that stimulate positive feelings. The brain can form new neural pathways — if you do the work.

 
#7
Smile
You don’t own all the problems in the world. When you smile the world smiles back at ya’! Smiling happens without much thought. It is a very natural response that shares our happiness with others. Did you know that smiling also triggers activity in your brain? There is a serious mind-body connection there, in your ventromedial prefrontal cortex to be exact, which is [not surprisingly] the area of your brain that registers happiness.

 

 
‘Sharing is caring!’
How about you?
What is your most important rule of life and what rule could you ‘obey’ more often?
Or is there an important rule of life missing in this list?
Share your wisdom in commentbox below!

Mirjam Stoffels

Founder of seven2success, author of ‘Daily Little Secrets to Success’ and guest blogger at Project Eve and 365 dagen succesvol. In my mission to make seven2success the biggest platform of knowledge and inspiration for women, I want to inspire you with our content! Check us out on Facebook and Twitter! I’d love to connect!  And do you want to inspire other women? Write for us!

 
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