My 10 Commandments.

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Once upon a time, while deep in the throes of graduate school, I invested time defining my core values.

With the wide-eyed life excitement the young possess and the older covet, I spent countless hours brainstorming my fundamental beliefs in effort to create a foundation for my personal and professional life.

2+ decades later these beliefs haven’t shifted much.

Other than a few tweaks (I was never a woman who desperately wanted marriage or family) they’ve remained static.

My core beliefs may have remained unchanged I, however, have not.

The intervening years have markedly shifted my perspective and I found myself craving a new way to capture/define the woman I aspire to be in my second life.

oakland marathon finishline

Running WALKING toward mid-life.

I was stumped.

All I knew for certain was I didn’t want to impose rules around my existence even if the guidelines might get me to my destination more swiftly.

Not only am I anti-MUSTurbation, I wholly believe our best lives are experienced through releasing attachment to any outcome. I knew for me it was about the process of the next 40 years not implementing rigidity regarding making my way there.

I was stumped.

And then one night, after a long, hot day of swim and sun, I flopped on the couch and indulged in some guilty pleasure.

As I watched the piece of cinematic wonderment known as Bruce Almighty it dawned on me:

I needed a set of commandments.

I wasn’t seeking another mission statement or life-values list. I longed for a set of overarching, non-religion based principles by which to live the remainder of life.

I paused Jim C. immediately and got to work.

I brainstormed the woman I aspired to be and how Id need to behave in order to become her.

I pondered the impact I wanted to make in my remaining years and considered what characteristics would be required to achieve this.

Be it serendipity or subconscious conformity after repeated writing and revising I ended up with a list of ten items (AKA commandments). A list which felt like a summary of sorts of the fundamental principles by which I’ll strive to live my life.

Ten vague by design, non-punitive mini-goals. ‘Commandments’ which compel me consider/use them as guiding principles whose meaning may shift depending upon each individual life-scenario.

1. Be brazen.
2. Choose quantity.
3. Live different years.
4. Be bubbleicious.
5. Let go.
6. Remember to quit.
7. Show up authentic.
8. Create margins.
9. Define language.
10. Glow.

Will this creation of Personal 10 Commandments be the key I seek to unlocking my best life? 

Will the brevity/concise nature of my list propel me rapidly toward success in a way verbose mission statements have not?

At this point it’s yet to be determined (check back with me in 20 years?), but half of the battle has been won in that I’m truly excited to discover/find out.

And you?

  • Have you created ever “personal commandments?”
  • Do you turn to detailed mission statements to help create your best life?

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Comments

  1. I haven’t actually written them down but I like to think I know what they are and they have definitely changed over the years! I love the idea of actually writing them down and seeing if what is on the paper is what in truly going on in my life. Interesting…

  2. I’ve never written them down, though I do live my life within the boundaries (?) of my own set of commandments.

  4. I really thought I was all set with my plan to run into old age. Then the plot twist! RA! Now that the dust has settled, I’m on cruise control while I rework my mission statement. Because I am forever changed, but I’m thinking for the better!

  5. My life mission statement hasn’t changed. But of course I have. You have to adapt and grow, but who you are at your core should remain steadfast and true.

  6. I have written them down several times and several times my life has been changed by losing people dear to me. So I am trying to rewrite my list right now…Funny or coincidence that you should post this now… I need to figure out what I want and who I am…one more time!

  7. Your 10 commandments are great! I think it is very important to evaluate and change or add as you age your goals keeping inline with your values. Great post!

  9. Interesting. I think I don’t have it really articulatedb but I do feel like I have a value set that guides me.

  10. I don’t know about working out a set of personal commandments but I’m going to go through yours (just read the Glow commandment & boy, howdy can I relate). The last 18 months have kicked my tush but good. I need to reframe & reboot.

  11. I’ve done the “pick one word” approach to inform my intention at the start of each year; that’s about all the rule-making I can take. 🙂

  12. I love how simple and unique your commandments are. They say volumes in just a couple words. I have affirmations I repeat to myself while I’m out walking or lying in bed and it relaxes me. When I make a list on paper I forget about it and end up throwing them away to get rid of paper clutter.

  15. These are fantastic Carla – I want my own 10 commandments now – I’m copying yours and using them as a reference point! If I come up with some I’ll blog about them and let you know 🙂

  18. After almost 64 years on this earth, I really never thought about creating a mission for my life. I have helped hundreds if not thousands of children to communicate and learn over a 41 year career, I have helped my daughter grow into a responsible, caring, passionate, intelligent and contributing member of society, and I continue to be supportive to friends, family and be the best person I can be physically, emotionally present to my spouse and others and work and play hard. Is there anything else? I never had to “think” about any of it until now….just lived the life I knew I had to live.

  19. Our core values epitomize our identity. They define who we are and the boundaries in our day to day interactions. I think it is from our significant others and those we interact with that we get our core values.

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