What’s a concise description of the First Agreement?

The First Agreement is “Be impeccable with your word.” To be impeccable means to be without sin. Sin, as defined by Ruiz, is simply the act of doing something that is against yourself or harmful to yourself. The word is language, which Ruiz considers to be the manifestation of our intent and the most powerful tool humans have. Thus, being impeccable with our word means not using our word against ourselves in any way.

What’s a concise description of the Second Agreement?

The Second Agreement is “Don’t take anything personally.” Ruiz explains that humans are obsessed with self-importance, assuming that everything is about us when, in reality, only our own lives are. We are responsible solely for our own actions, and others are responsible for theirs. When others act against us, we must take care to remember that they are acting not because of us, but because of their own worldview and beliefs, and thus we cannot be emotionally harmed by them.

What’s a concise description of the Third Agreement?

The Third Agreement is “Don’t make assumptions.” Assumptions are based on lies and misinformation, which inherently create emotional poison and cause suffering. It is only our fear of rejection that prevents us from seeking the truth by asking questions and communicating clearly. Assumptions also require more assumptions to justify, since they are not based in truth, and compound on each other, becoming worse and worse over time. This harms both ourselves and the people we have relationships with.

What’s a concise description of the Fourth Agreement?

The Fourth Agreement is “Always do your best.” This agreement is the key to succeeding with the other three agreements. However, our best is not the same each day, but something that changes over time, depending on our energy levels, mood, and more. It is also important not to do more than our best, because we will exhaust ourselves, and not to do less than our best, because we will feel regret and frustration, thus judging ourselves more harshly because of it. When we do our best, we are able to live without regrets and accept and love ourselves, knowing that we are doing what we can.

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