In 2007, Italian police arrested Salvatore Lo Piccolo.
This dude was a real boss from the real life of the Sicilian mafia.
As they explored his home, they stumbled upon what they thought was their own Official “10 commands” of their crew.
In other words, “If you want to be a good fighter, follow these 10 easy steps!”
- No one can be presented directly to another of our friends. There must be a third person to do so.
- Never look at the wives of friends.
- Never see with cops.
- Don’t go to pubs and clubs.
- Always be available for Cosa Nostra is a duty – even if your wife is going to give birth.
- Appointments must be completely respected.
- Wives must be treated with respect.
- When asked about any information, the answer must be the truth.
- Money cannot be allocated if it belongs to others or other families.
- People who cannot be part of Cosa Nostra: Anyone who has a close relative to the police, anyone with a two -year -old relative in the family, who behaves badly and does not hold on to moral values.
These rules certainly do not cover any decision that every mafia must do every day, but are rules that one can learn, internalize and apply when they are in a precarious state and are not sure how to act.
The mob is not the only crew that has rules.
The ancient samurai in Japan had “Bushido” also known as “The Warrior Road”. 8 rules for their personal Code of Conduct:​
- Justice (justice)
- Courage
- Kindness (mercy)
- Respect
- Honesty
- Price
- Faith
- Self -control
Elsewhere, the knights in medieval Europe had a “Code of Horse Racing” that covered things such as “protection of weak and poor, courtesy and respect, courage and military courage”.
Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator and his compatriots have always taken each other with “power and honor”.
In 300, The Spartan soldiers knew that “they are coming home with your shield, or on it”.
We have Rules for Nerd Gym Rebellion very!
I mention these rules because we may not be mobsters, knights or samurai …
But I bet that by adding some rules to your life could help.
The rules can help us make decisions.
Life is complicated and our brains are able to talk to us in and out of various decisions.
However, when we have a rule, it allows us to make a clear choice rather than fighting on it.
Most important. We can make a rule once and then we do not need to lose spiritual power or will in each decision later.
Following a quick example:
Most of the successful popular diets are just a list of rules followed by people Take them to eat less calories.
- Intermittent fasting means “I only eat between noon at 8pm”
- The Paleo diet means “I don’t eat anything a caveman would not eat”.
- Vegan means “I do not eat products that come from animals”.
I’m not saying that none of these strategies above are better or worse than anyone else. I bring these heurists because they helped a lot and were not useful to many.
Each person can find a number of ambition rules that help them raise their lives.
I certainly have “Gym” rules that I usually follow:
I know when I follow these rules, “Nerd’s way”, I have a very good chance of staying in shape, healthy and feeling good about myself.
I also have rules on interaction with the world and Being a good man:
These specific rules may not work for you, and that is okay.
Is My rules.
Your rules must be concerned your situation.
We respect the rules of others
Here’s another fun hack: maybe we don’t like all the rules but we tend to Respect other people’s rules:
Our partner offers you a donut and you say “ohhhhh, shouldn’t.” They may return with “C’mon, live a little” because they don’t want to be the only person who eats a donut …
But if you say “I have a rule that I don’t eat donuts on a daily basis”, then you have a hard rule you follow and your partner will probably respect that.
Some people may abstain from certain food or drinks for religious or personal reasons.
There is no reason you can’t have rules for any reason you want!
What are your rules?
A good combination of the rules of ambition, professional and society is a good place to start. Or Heck, only one of each!
Heck, even one for each one can be a good place to get started.
These rules must be yours.
Here are some ideas to help you start:
- At work “I do what I say I will do, with the timetable, or I say to my team ahead of the timetable if I need more time.”
- With friends, “I always send a Thanksgiving note after I am invited to something from a friend”
- For health, “I only drink alcohol on Friday night and Saturday while watching football college”
- To sleep, “I watch only 1 episode of television per night. I stop playing video games and turning off social within 8pm”
Start writing certain ambition rules and see how it feels.
I find that the most specific and pass/fail the rules is, the more likely it is to follow them.
Rules that really help you make the long -term right decision in difficult situations. You know, those situations where the brain of the lizard tells you “Eat the candy!” or “Drink the Drink” or “Stay slowly and doomscroll for 7 hours!”
The rules can also be preventive so that you do not end up in these situations in the first place.
We can use technology, blockage software or hire our friends to help us to truly remain in our rules.
Once you have found your rules and really write them, you are watching the way you do with them.
If you find yourself violating your rules more often than it is not, it may be time to adjust the rules, make some deep thinking or work with a therapist to start calculating Why and What is going on.
Remember, failure can be a teacher of a teacher and the inclination of fear is a great opportunity to know that the life of the lesson is trying to teach us.
-Steve
