If you're bored, Read a book #TheAlchemist

I think I'm part of the last generation who were told to "go read a book" if they ever complained about being bored. Tonight (Read: Saturday Night), I decided to crack open a book that had been collecting dust on my bookshelf since February.

I was originally gifted "The Alchemist" back in February during a gift exchange with some girlfriends, but hadn't taken the time to read it. I remember hearing great reviews from people, but I ended up enjoying the way the book thickened up my bookshelf more than having the desire to actually read it.

A blogger I follow (McKenzieRenae) recently posted about recognizing moments in your life that can serve as a "jumpstart" to something amazing. She recommended "The Alchemist" as a good book to read and I realized that was the same book that'd been sitting on my shelf for months.

Keeping it 100 -- This is the first book I've read in years and honestly, it made me excited to 1) Get through the whole thing in one night and 2) Actually read a book instead of watching Netflix/Hulu or wasting hours on the internet. I feel inspired to start reading more books again, so if you have any suggestions please send them this way! I've been fanning out over Mindy Kaling lately, so I think I may pick up her book "Why Not Me?" next.

My snazzy way of taking notes lol #StayWoke

The Four Agreements

The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz, is a book that has been on my must-read list the past few months.  As a Mexican Shaman, Ruiz wrote the book as a guide to personal freedom.

In an effort to "expose self-limiting beliefs" Ruiz offers four "simple, yet effective" rules for personal conduct:

1. Be impeccable with your word
2. Don't take anything personally
3. Don't make assumptions
4. Always do your best

These seem easy enough but when faced with living your life by these rules you may realize appearances are deceiving. In my own life I find that I do take things personally from time to time, do not always put forth my best effort, can waver on my word, and sometimes make assumptions. Ruiz believes that by living our lives with these four principles as a guide we can eliminate many of the struggles we encounter. I, for one, am interested in seeing how accurate his theory is.

For the next week I'm going to try living my life by these principles, focusing on one each day for the first four days, then perfecting all of them the remaining seven.