Tag Archives: Acceptable Behavior

Standard Bearer

Standards- a level of quality or attainment.

There is a level of behavior we will accept in any situation. These are our standards. Our standards exist in our relationships, our careers, and ourselves, and the level of quality we agree is the level of quality we will be defined by in life. Today the challenge is to look at the standards you accept in all phases of your life. Is it time to raise the standards of what you expect? This fact can only be discovered if you are more conscious of exactly what your standards of behavior are. It begins by looking at your thoughts, the resulting emotions, the words you use, and the actions you consciously take every day. What are your standards? Are there things you can no longer accept? Change is an inevitable part of life; if you are not happy with the way things are going, it is time to change.

Professional Standards

No matter what you do to earn a living, you have standards of the behavior you expect from those around you. Your self-esteem and value will determine the level of those standards in life. If you believe you are valuable, you will demand to be treated with respect in all interactions. The great thing is, that is most often how people will treat you.   It is not wrong or awkward to hold people to a standardsstandard of behavior, and it is the level at which you perceive your value and stick to it.

Your self-worth has been developed since you were very young. The messages you were sent as a child the way your parents, teachers, and peers treated you created your standards. It doesn’t matter what career you are in, and people will treat you accurately the way you allow them to, which comes from your criteria. Look at what you accept, then think about how you would like to be different and take nothing less than that behavior. It is not bitchy, difficult, or wrong to feel self-value and expect to be treated positively. It would help if you demanded it in the workplace.

Relationship Standards

When it comes to relationships of all kinds, standards are vital to the type of treatment you will accept and receive. Relationships are a difficult thing to learn how to manage. There is no class in school to help you manage all of the emotions, thoughts, and behaviors that come from being in a relationship with someone, and you have to figure it all out on your own. Since most of us are in our teens when we standardsare forming these standards, they can be very inconsistent, varied, and all over. Our earliest experiences with love will build the base for all relationships that follow. If you accept bad behavior or lack self-esteem, you may think this is the type of relationship you deserve and the one you will get until you change your standards.

Look at your relationships today and see where your standards lie. Honestly, know where you are on your partner’s priority list and see if that is where you want to be. Is your standard too low, too high, or just right? This inquiry is the type of conscious thought that can improve your life. Love is difficult to manage because it comes with an equal slice of fear. Fear of being alone, being judged by others, failing, not being reasonable, or not being successful can always haunt you. All of these are rolled into relationships, and they help set the standards of what type of treatment you accept. Are you living out of love or fear? Set your criteria to love, acceptance, understanding, kindness, and support for your partner. Accept nothing less than that in return, or you will be living an unhappy life.

Your Standards

Then there are the standards you set for yourself. The behavior you accept from yourself will affect your life and the success you experience more than anything else. If you look in the mirror and you don’t like your fitness level, it is time to make a change. Start by looking at your standards for what type of food you eat standardsand how much exercise you are getting. Those standards need to change before you can. The same is true in finances or the quality of your relationships. What you accept from other people is going to be what you get.

The good news is that all of this can change and change quickly. We can change standards, and behaviors and experiences will change with them. You won’t lose 40 lbs in a day, but you can start your path to losing 40 pounds by setting higher standards for yourself and then being dedicated to living up to0 them. If you accept nothing less than your criteria, you have no choice but to improve in whichever areas you have chosen to focus on in your life. Where focus goes, energy flows.

First Thing to Do

The first thing to do is to identify what your standards are. Rest assured, you are achieving the standard you set for yourself. Set them higher if you want to experience improvement. It all starts with a conscious awareness of all of your thoughts on what you accept, how you deal with the resulting feelings, the words you speak to express them, and your actions. Nothing happens without your direct and consistent action.

“If you want to change your life, you have to raise your standards.” -Tony Robbins

“Key to success? Change the status quo. Raise your standards.” -Anonymous

“Never lower your standards to fit in with other people.” -Anonymous

 

Rebel

I’m a Rule Breaker

As a human being living on the Earth, you are constantly bombarded with warnings from the time you are born until the time your life here ends. People tell you the rules and the tiny gray area, acceptable behavior and what is not. Some were designed to keep you physically safe, but many were designed to keep you from being original or standing out in any way.

Looking at all of those rules I have had stated, explained, written, and spelled out for me, I am here to urge you to do something dangerous. Please ignore all of the stuff you have been warned away from and break the rules because, in the end, that may be the only way you can find your true identity and create something great.

The Beginning of the Problem

When you are a child, the adults in your life are most often going to warn you about all of the “bad” things that could happen to you if you are not careful. Warnings about touching the stove, playing with fire, jumping out the window, or any other common-sense activity are more than likely going to fall on deaf ears anyway.

How many children have taken the warnings of imminent danger as a call for adventure? I know that many of my most lasting learning experiences resulted from just this type of situation. My parents always warned me about burning myself on the cigarette lighter in the car. That only led me to touch the cigarette lighter in the car when it was orange; you know what I learned? Please don’t do that. It hurts, and I never did it again. Experience is the most excellent teacher.

As I grew up, though, it seemed that other people wanted the adventurous spirit to leave me, and I started to take people’s word for things and started doing exactly what society expected of me because I wanted to fit in.

To hell with what you feel, go to school, get a job, buy a house, retire, then die. That is the appropriate life path we are taught. I was the right person, but I never had adventures and never did anything outside of my expectations. Things were safe, but they were not very interesting. I was more concerned with what other people thought of me than what I felt about myself. That is an equation that can’t exist forever.

Wake up before it’s too late

Much like being trapped in a dream, where you are falling, and you know you will wake up before you hit the ground, and even though your heart is beating fast, you know it wasn’t real. That is how life happens sometimes; a traumatic experience occurs, a death in the family, a loss of a job, divorce, or poverty. It causes you to experience a shift in your paradigm that changes you in profound and often beautiful ways. You, in effect, wake up and look at yourself and see that not only are you not living your dreams, but you have also forgotten what they were! This will lead you to realize that there must be changes.

Looking at the path, you have been following; you suddenly see that you are not yourself; you are not what you were born to be. You wake up and need answers. I think some look for help in unhealthy relationships, and some look for a chemical solution, but no matter your reaction, you know that just like when you left childhood things behind, you can’t go back to the way things were before. It would be like going back to the dream and completing the fall to your death. Not acceptable.

Why Are You Here?

You are not just here to fill up the space you are in. That would be a meaningless existence, and you are not just here to sleepwalk through your life. You are here to inspire, to teach, to change, to be an example. Life shouldn’t be taken as an opportunity to tell others the rules, what they should do, what they should not do. Life is an opportunity to be an example of what is true to you. Some will accept your life and get your message, while others will likely think you are crazy. There is someone out there that needs your unique personality and talents. Be that person!

You weren’t born to make a difference to everybody, but you are here to make a difference to somebody. Whoever that is, right now, is looking for your example of change, and it is up to you to provide it. You may never know just how many lives you touch, but that doesn’t make your impact any less critical. The rules of life will tell you where to work, how you should look, and what it is appropriate to say.

Most of the most significant accomplishments in the history of man were achieved by people who didn’t follow these types of constrained expectations. You are here for a purpose, find it, and then pursue it. If you are not sure, be yourself and see what happens.

Dare To Dream

I was once asked if I were to pursue anything that I wanted, what would that be? I realized that I was in deep trouble at that point because I didn’t have a dream. In my past, I was an empty vessel, like a marionette with someone else pulling my strings, a facade of a person. There was no burning desire, no call to greatness, and there was a loud and ominous……………nothing.

That was the beginning of my awakening because I believed life had to have more of a point than exist, spend money, and acquire things. I began to dream.

At first, just little dreams that I almost felt guilty about. Then as I continued to see the power that dreams possess and the strength that you can take from them, I started to have bigger plans. These dreams have become fuel. To search, share my thoughts, to search for a purpose to be a better person.

Many people are lucky enough to realize this power early in life, but some do not become aware until much later. Dare to dream. Whether you achieve your dreams or not should be a part of the adventure of life. The pursuit of a goal is often the real thrill anyway.

I was once told that if you never try, you will never know, and that is the case in following your dreams. The rules will tell you where you should go and what you should do. Your dreams will tell you where you want to go and what you want to do.

The One Person You Can Believe In

When it is all said and done, there is going to be one person that either always came through for you or ultimately let you down. That person is you. Believe in yourself, that you can do whatever it is you set out to do. There will be struggles and times of doubt that are part of being human. That doesn’t mean that you should stop trying to achieve or stop trying to reach for the greatness you dream about.

You have a light inside of you that is unique to you, and nobody else can touch it or take it away from you. Life often makes people forget their strength, as they allow bad experiences and bad luck to dictate their behavior. All of the should haves, would haves, could haves of life force people to doubt themselves and forget how great they are.

You can rediscover who you are, and your passion by not living up to a stereotype thrust upon you by others and creating a life that makes you happy. Ignore the so-called conventional, and follow your inner voice that knows exactly where you should be and what you should be doing. The rules will tell you to make as much money as possible, and you will be happy. The truth tells you to be as comfortable as possible, and it won’t matter how much money you have. Many wealthy people are depressed because it doesn’t fill your heart or nourish your soul no matter how much money you collect.

No matter what you decide to do in the end, if you at least consider breaking the rules of convention and following the path you should be on all along, the world will be a better place for it.

“Once you have your basics down, you can start breaking the rules. “- Author: Tom Colicchio

“I like breaking the rules.” – Author: Lexa Doig

“Breaking rules is indeed an important part of creativity. Innovation needs a level of guidance.” – Author: Pearl Zhu

“You don’t become a success by breaking the rules. You don’t become a success by obeying the rules. You become a success by inventing the rules.” – Author: Chloe Thurlow