Are you living your life based on your own STANDARDS, standards that you've purposefully chosen for yourself? Or are you living your life according to someone else's STANDARDS - society, your parents, your friends?
If you want to be peaceful in life, and live a life of DIGNITY and INTEGRITY, you must choose your own standards and live your life according to your standards, not someone else's!
The problem for most of us is we never stop to look at our standards and see if they are really the standards we CHOOSE for ourselves. Once you’re clear about your standards in any domain, you instantly know what you will accept and what you will not accept.
How do I identify my standards, you ask? Good question. A good place to look is when you hear yourself say “That shouldn’t be…”, or “I should…..”, or "They shouldn't...", or even "I'm satisfied with..." Those are your standards speaking.
We have standards in EVERY area of our life. So, let's take a look at some standards in some typical areas:
Your BODY and HEALTH - Is your standard to look like the guy or gal on the cover of the magazine or to be reasonably fit with occasional exercise?
Your RELATIONSHIPS - Is your standard to have someone there so you won't be alone or have someone you respect and value, who shares your interests and who is your biggest fan?
Your FRIENDSHIPS - Is your standard anyone that will hang out with you or someone you have mutual trust with who demonstrates an equal commitment to the friendship?
Your JOB or CAREER - Is your standard something that pays the bills and is comfortable or something that you're passionate about and allows you to express all of your talents.
Your CHURCH - Is your standard to sit quietly, sing from the hymnal and listen to the preacher speak from behind the podium or is it to stand and shout, sing with the choir or band and speak along with the preacher who walks amongst you.
The point is YOU CHOOSE! Our suffering in life often comes from us CHOOSING to live our life according to someone else's standards and not our own.
As you identify and become clear about your standards, once you see that something is below or above your standards you can: CHOOSE to accept it, REQUEST that it be changed, or CHOOSE to take some action to create a situation where your standards are being met.
We live in FULL DIGNITY in life when we live to our own standards and when we act in INTEGRITY with those standards!
IS IT TIME FOR YOU TO TAKE A HARDER LOOK AT YOUR STANDARDS AND MAKE SOME CHANGES IN YOUR LIFE?