The Four Agreements: A Practical Guide to Personal Freedom

In our lives we cross paths with many different folks. I love meeting new people. and for this reason, I am a mingler at parties. I enjoy striking up conversations.  Actually, I like to ask questions.  I tend to be a better listener than talker. We all have stories to tell and I love to hear people’s stories.  I believe that by talking with others, sharing lives, we can always learn something new.  This was the case at a school dinner-auction that I attended a number of years ago.  In causally talking with another lady she told me about a book that she was reading, and she strongly felt this book was making a difference in her life.  This book was called, The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz.  For her, this book was helping her become stronger. Something she felt that she needed. The book sounded interesting, and I thought maybe one day I might pick it up.  So I tucked the name of the book, The Four Agreements, away in my mind.

The funny thing was the next day I took a road trip down the coast, stopping in little gift shops and stores along the way.  Lo and behold, as I was browsing through one catch-all store – there sitting on a table staring right at me was this tiny little book called, you guessed it, The Four Agreements.  For sure, this was a sign that I needed to read this book!

Of course I picked the book up and bought it.  I have been forever glad to have come across it. The book has been around for some time – a publishing date of 1997 – but until that dinner-auction, I had never heard of it.

The four agreements are basically four principles to live your life by.  Simple and Sound Principles.  But like many things, much easier said than done.

1. Be Impeccable With Your Word.  Words are very powerful – in both a negative and positive way.
2. Don’t Take Anything Personally.  This is the one the woman I met at the auction was working on.
3. Don’t Make Assumptions. You know what they say… When you assume; you make and ass out of you and me. My words, not Mr. Mr. Ruiz’s.
4. Always Do Your Best.  So true! But what Don Miguel Ruiz points out, and I had never thought about, was that your best is different on any given day. Slap my forehead!

This book, while short, is chock full of sound advice!  I have found myself pulling it off the bookshelf many times for a little refresher. It is also a book that I have loved sharing with others.  And the woman that first shared this book with me? Our paths have not crossed since that night many years ago. It just goes to show, how words can travel and the impact they can make.  I am glad this book was shared with me.  I think it contains valuable insight that we can all learn from.