37 Principles I Believe In Enough to Live By

We all have names, our own look, and a family tree. Someone may recognize you by these attributes, but they will not know the person you really are until they know the principles of life by which you live. In other words, your values. Our beliefs are developed over time as we experience life influenced by family, friends, teachers, mentors and even adversaries.

As a parent or mentor, ‘how you live’ will be the lessons most trusted and believed by your children or followers…not ‘what you say’! That doesn’t suggest you should not say what you believe, just don’t negate your oral teachings by how you act out your life.

Below are the principles I try to live by -- not perfectly by any means. I have violated, at times, 30 or more of these principles. But they are my guiding light and the lessons I would like to pass on to my children, grandchildren, and anyone else who would care to listen.

37 Principles I Choose to Teach and Follow:

1. A stable, supportive family is the greatest privilege you will ever have.
2. You create your own privileges by forsaking victimhood of any kind.
3. Always do what you say you will do!
4. A goal, trusted advice, persistence, and self-reliance will are your best tools for success.  
5. Your 'worth' is the sum of your tangible and intangible assets.
6. Never have more debt than you’re worth. (See 6 above).
7. Never work with people that don’t value you or your mission.
8. Job satisfaction comes with what you love to do, not what you earn.
9. Charity’s goal is to help, not to substitute.
10. Giving is selfless, and selflessness is freeing.
11. Making the right decisions is aided by having values.
12. To ensure a young person will not live in poverty, they need to do these three things. (from Brookings Institute)
    1. Finish High School
    2. Get a job
    3. Don’t get pregnant before you get married.
13. Always attempt to think before responding.
14. Apologies are like hard work, tough but rewarding.
15. It’s better that no one knows your achievements than to boast about them (with few exceptions)
16. Surround yourself with inspirational things and people.
17. Capture inspiration before it leaves you!
18. Teach and give your children responsibilities, and hold them to those responsibilities.
19. Failure is a teacher, and like any teacher, you must pay attention to its lessons to learn.
20. Bad times are tough, but thankfully tough to recall.  
21. Only when you leave a beaten path will you have a possibility of finding something undiscovered.
22. Be you! Always be you! That doesn’t mean ‘don’t change’, but change to be a better you. It’s like polishing silverware. A tarnished spoon is still a spoon after you make it shine.
23. Have gratitude and appreciation: Rain makes me appreciate the sunshine, sunshine makes me appreciate colors, colors make me appreciate the greenery around me, and the greenery around me makes me appreciate the rain.
24. Respecting other opinions does not mean you have to agree with their opinions.
25. ‘Pace yourself’ doesn’t mean slow down, it means to move forward smartly.
26. The past is for memories. The future is for hope. Today is for you!
27. Never box yourself in. Have an open, but critical mind.
28. If it feels wrong, it most likely is.
29. A dollar earned is one hundred times more valuable than a dollar handed to you.
30. Pay attention to kids, but ignore their tantrums.
31. We’re created equal in the eyes of God, but we must admit we are not equal in all talents or results.
32. Everyone deserves equal opportunity, but each of us owns our results, good or bad.
33. When you realize life is cycles of ups and downs, it will keep you even-keeled. (This too shall pass)
34. Don’t overreact to what you see or hear. Understand life by percentages, not raw numbers. It may help to keep you sane! For example:
    1. Typically 100 children are kidnapped by strangers in the US each year. An absolute nightmare for any parent. Each reported incident creates numbing fear!
    2. But be reassured, somewhat, that these 100 incidents happened among 61,000,000 children 14 and under over 365 days (2017). A very, very, rare occurrence – 0.000001%).  *
35. There is no better rest than the rest that comes after hard work.
36. The only one who will know if you have true integrity is YOU. (Doing the right thing without the knowledge of others)
37. Strive for, but don’t expect, perfection!

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