Almost every day, I journal my thoughts.

Today, I edited my journaled thoughts into this blog post.

. . .

10 principles I aspire to live by:

1) Creativity.

To develop and express creativity regularly. Exercise my mind. Exercise my imagination. In a world of endless consuming of information, self expression is more important than ever.

Starting this blog is one of the best decisions I have made. The creative muscle in my brain has been unlocked. Even on this small personal project, the gratification from self-expression (via writing) is incredible.

2) Financial stability.

To create a system for financial freedom. To be free from the financial obligations that most people try to avoid thinking about.

Money doesn’t guarantee happiness. But a lack of money almost always brings stress, and therefore unhappiness.

3) Low maintenance.

To be low maintenance. To be minimalistic with my ‘wants’.

To not feel the urge to chase short-lived material experiences. (Especially the new thing that will only be trending this week, and forgotten in a month.)

To not falsely associate spending money with happiness.

4) Supportive and fulfilling relationships.

Being in a team of mutual support will take you further than where you could go alone.

To be in a relationship where you each fulfil the other’s needs. To have someone you can have intimate candid conversations with.

5) Me time.

To prioritise and maximise “me” time.

Whenever I spend time alone, I feel more at peace. With long periods of uninterrupted time, I can reflect with more clarity and depth.

With a clear mind, comes peace. With peace, comes happiness.

6) Grounding and perspective.

To be grounded from moment-to-moment. My energy is mine. To not let external things (people or events) pull me in directions I don’t want to go.

To maintain a perspective of life, and how infinitesimal and inconsequential things are. To always take a step back, and to not get caught up in how trivial most problems really are.

7) “Don’t drift.”

To always be present and self-aware. To choose my own choices. To make my own decisions. To create my own path.

Never be lead down a life of someone else’s choices.

8) “No hurry, no pause.”

A life mantra from Tim Ferriss.

To not hurry – to maintain a calm long-term view of life. To know that rushing is not the answer. Rushing is unnecessary stress. Rushing is unsustainable.

To not pause – to know you can accomplish whatever you want in life, just by continually placing one foot in front of other. Consistency is the answer.

9) Courage.

When a big decision needs to be made, or a problem needs to be confronted – the biggest obstacle is the mental self-talk and self-doubt, not the problem itself.

Thinking about jumping into the cold water causes more suffering, than the coldness of the water itself.

When I begin to hear the self-talk – to have the courage to take the action.

10) Honesty.

To be honest with myself, and to be honest with others.

This principle is inspired by Kara Swisher (from her interview with Tim Ferriss), and her stories of Steve Jobs. Both people are (and were) pure unfiltered versions of themselves.

Honesty is something I need to continually develop. I tend to shy away from it, for fear of uncertainty and confrontation.

. . .

What would your 10 principles be?