Submitted by Cath Duncan

through her bottom-line bookclub, "resource miner," cath duncan offers accelerated learning programs for professionals who want to develop the "agile living strategies" for thriving in these turbulent times. you can follow cath’s blog and find her on twitter.

Here are Cath's "Five Rules For Life":

1.) Focus on who you want to BE, rather than what you want to have and do.
Much of our time is spent on trying to HAVE and DO more, and we tend to forget about the most important goal - who we’re BEING. Living a fulfilling life is about being who you want to be, not what you’re doing or having. Take some time to decide what adjectives you’d like people to use when they describe you, what essence or spirit you’d like to exude in everything you do, and how you’d like to be feeling. Focus on that and you’ll always know how to handle the doing and having in a way that feels good.

2.) Love your fear.
Most people think fear is a bad thing - especially in the world of personal development where people will often tell you to ignore or fight your fear. Your fear is on your side, trying to do a bunch of good stuff for you. It lets you know when there’s a threat, it shows you know what’s important to you, it points you to the gaps in your plans that still need to be filled, and it’s a confirmation that you’re growing. Fear is perfectly safe and healthy. So befriend your fear, have regular conversations with it, and start working with your fear to create the life you want.

3.) Focus on results, rather than rules.
You know all those rules you’ve been told you should follow in order to be successful and happy - they're all made up. Sure, some of them will get you great results, but some will get you lousy results and you’ll get sucked into a template life that’s confining and soul-destroying. So focus on results, rather than rules. When you find yourself thinking, "I have to do..." or "I should...", stop and ask yourself what results you want and what results following those rules would get you, and remind yourself that you can always change the rules or make up new ones that’ll get you the results you want.

4.) Always prioritise action and real-world feedback over perfect plans on paper.
We’ve all been taught to plan and prepare and analyze, and to only step forward with action once we’re certain we can do that thing perfectly. We’ve been punished for being spontaneous and there are back-row critics surrounding us on all sides, waiting to pounce as soon as we make a mistake. But there are things we can learn in the real world that we can never learn in the world of imagination and analysis. And you’ll learn faster, be more relevant, and create better results when you step into learning in the real world. So, rather than trying to figure it all out on paper and in your head before you take any action, prioritise taking action in the real world - where you can get real-world feedback and learn, tweak, and adjust your strategy until you’re where you want to be.



5.) Change your mind on a regular basis.
Most of us have been brought up to believe that changing your mind is a fickle thing, but that’s often just other people’s way of trying to maintain the status quo so that they aren’t placed in the sort of position where they might have to grow and change too. The only way you’ll ever change your results is if you change your thinking. So be willing to challenge your own thoughts, stories, and rules to unearth and dissolve your assumptions.

Cath currently resides in London, United Kingdom.

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