The Four Agreements by don Miguel Rui.

The Four Agreements by don Miguel Rui are simple concepts yet profoundly effective. When applied to your life, it can be absolutely transformational. You will experience more peace, joy, love, strength, and energy. And you’ll soon realize that at any given moment you have the power to change the outcome of a situation, conversation, or feeling – simply by incorporating these four agreements into your mind, actions, or words. Once you make these agreements with yourself, they’ll become second nature to how you think, feel, and respond. For an in-depth look into The Four Agreements, you can pick up or download a copy of his book here.

©2016 Susie Lee

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Let love guide you in your pain and struggle.

More often than not, we’d rather run away from our pain, problem, or hurt than to face it head on. But I believe a lesson never goes away until we learn what they’re supposed to teach us. We can avoid difficult people or we can learn how to love them beyond our capacity. We can be frustrated at a problem or think of a creative solution to get through it. We can stay mad or we can learn to let go. We have choices everyday, and these choices will either make or break us. It’s not always easy to do the right thing or be the better person but for the sake of our spiritual growth and mental peace, we must let love guide us in our decision making process. And when we do, we’ll find that our pain won’t have a grip on us any longer because we’ve been set free.

©2015 Susie Lee

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Ruthlessly downsizing.

The other day, I was helping a friend move their parent’s stuff out of their 40+ years house. Twelve hours later, it seemed as though we hadn’t even dented their place. The next day, this forced me to reevaluate my own stuff throughout the rooms, closets, and crawl space. What am I holding on to that I don’t use anymore? And why am I still holding on to it? So I began to ruthlessly get rid of clothes, books, and knick-knacks that I don’t use, look at, or need.

Why do we hold on to unneeded stuff? I’m not just talking about physical stuff but emotional and psychological baggage in our lives such as anger, resentment, fear, regret, worry, pride, or jealousy. The consequences of holding on to these will eventually clutter our minds and occupy space in our emotional living room. It’s not easy getting rid of these destructive feelings because we’ve either grown accustomed to it, attached to it, or it’s too much work to get rid of. And we may even justify keeping our feelings. But at some point, we must honestly ask ourselves, ‘Why am I still holding on to this? Is it helpful, useful, or productive?’ If the answer’s no, get rid of it – it’s just weighing you down. For the sake of our wellbeing, peace of mind, and the health of our relationships, we must ruthlessly de-clutter our emotional baggage on a regular basis.

©2015 Susie Lee

Think before you snack.

In my last article, I said that a little etiquette goes a long way. In the same regard, we can also apply this principle to so many other areas of life – take for instance, snacking on junk food. Not only are these seemingly small portions bursting with flavour but they’re also packed with a lot of hidden calories. And until we’re aware of just how many calories we’re consuming, we won’t have any inclination to stop munching. It’s okay to nibble here and there but make sure you also exercise here and there. So if you’re a snacker like me, here’s a little chart to keep those calories in check and balance:

©2015 Susie LeeThinkThink2