10 Rules to Break for a Happier & Productive Life
During your life’s journey, you’re sure to run across some rules that seem ridiculous and confining. These are rules that are begging to be broken – and if you have the courage, you should feel free to break them – once and for all.
Most of us have been directed that certain rules meant to guide us toward being better educated, realizing our dreams, and respecting others, are foundational keys to success and happiness. I experienced that influence at an early age, but seemed to have been blessed with a Contraian personality, so in many ways I had a recoginzed rebelious attitude.
Here are the 10 Rules of Society that I feel can be broken to live a better and happier life:
- The 9 to 5 Rule –
This antiquated rule was first implemented by a man named Robert Owens during the Industrial Revolution. It was normal for workers to put in 14-hour days to ensure a factory’s maximum efficiency. Owens promoted the idea that no one should work more than 8 hours per day. Henry Ford reinforced the idea with his Ford Motor Company by giving his employees fewer hours (8-hour days) and double pay. The astounding results were a double increase in Ford’s profit margins. Smaller companies began to adopt the policy, and it’s still a standard for most companies today.
- Stay True to Your Goals and Dreams –
Setting goals has always been a good method to realize a plan for your life. It’s common to have goals from the time you enter school until you reach the “success” you planned for and dreamed of. Society dictates that you should stay true to those goals and dreams no matter what – that once you set a goal, there’s NO veering off the path. Giving up is looked down on, and changing your mind makes you look indecisive and confused.
- You Need the Right Qualifications to Do That –
“Only qualified applicants need apply” is the common sentence found in most listings for jobs or anything else you may want to do. Unless you have the right credentials, society assumes you can’t do the job properly. This rule was originally set forth to make it easier for the interviewers to weed out those who aren’t likely to be able to do a particular job. Some indeed need people with particular knowledge of the job they’re asked to perform.
Consider the job, your passion for it, and what you can do to find a way into a position in that field.
A recent example from a friend:
The Golf Course Job stated the applicant needed an Agronomy degree, a friend did not have one, BUT he had spent 20+ years in charge the decision made for maintaining the beautiful grass at another Country Club. He was hired
- Your Parents are Always Right –
Almost every religion teaches us to respect and honor our elders, especially our parents. That adage works for a while because when we’re young, we need guidance to get us through some of the dangerous or awkward times of our lives. Today, society’s outlook on parents always being right is vastly different from the old “Father Knows Best” philosophy. While you should always show respect for elders, know that they are fallible and can and do make mistakes.
- Be Friendly to Everyone –
This is a definite rule ripe for breaking in today’s society. You simply can’t be friendly to everyone, because some people will use it to take advantage of you or at least view you as a pushover. Today’s transient society is vastly different from the old small town neighborhoods and farming communities where everyone knew each other, and kids could stay outdoors after dark without a care for what might be lurking around the corner. Guarding your demeanor doesn’t mean you should be rude. Honesty and politeness aren’t the same as becoming a victim by being too accommodating to people. This old rule could lead to disaster and danger in today’s society.
- Work Hard, and You Will Succeed –
Since you were a kid, you were likely inundated with the “work hard, and you’ll succeed” philosophy. The grand prizes of wealth, power, and status would be yours if you just adhered to this mantra.
This rule worked better in yesterday’s society, where if you didn’t plow the lower forty and get the crops in before sundown, you could lose everything. In a farming society, people had to work from sunup to sundown to succeed. The same was true for almost anything you wanted to accomplish in the past. Working hard and sticking to the plan was the only way to succeed in business or individual pursuits.
Today, technology has made it much easier to succeed if you simply work smarter rather than harder.
- What Other People Think is Important –
There’s always a fear of judgment from other people in your life, especially those you respect and care about. The impact of this rule is that it may limit you to being what others expect of you rather than soaring to your own heights. Those who fear judgment from others may not take advantage of everything available to them. In the past, our ancestors needed to have cooperation from others in their lives for survival. They also needed to attract mates for reproduction, so being liked and seen as an authority figure was very important.
Those who pursued the wrong path or didn’t please others were ostracized from society, and their very lives could be in danger. However, today we can Take Control of our lives based on OUR definition of self
- Always be Humble – You were likely told from a young age that it’s always best to be humble in all your dealings. Teachings from the bible and from prophets and writings in all religions say that being humble is the way to make people like and accept you.
The dictionary defines ‘humble’ as showing or feeling that you’re low in importance. It’s the opposite of pretentiousness. But, you don’t have to be pretentious to toot your own horn, and in today’s world it might be difficult to succeed unless you do tout your own talents or experience.
If you appear too humble, people might misinterpret your demeanor as a “broken spirit” or a lack of enthusiasm and determination to get the job done. A good balance of both is preferable.
- Take Yourself Very Seriously – Taking yourself seriously is often said to be the best way to progress at work or anything you’re passionate about. You likely see blogs and websites online every day where people are so serious, they’re literally preaching at others.
This rule is perfect for people who think they’re authority figures or have credentials such as a doctorate in a certain subject. They can tout their authority and validate their opinions by what they’ve accomplished so far in life.
If you take yourself seriously, you run the risk of others perceiving you as pompous or a “know-it-all.” It’s good to aspire to be an authority figure, but inserting a little humility in your attitude can help others take you more seriously.
- Mistakes Are a Bad Thing – Mistakes have always been considered equal to failure. If you say, “I made a mistake taking that job” or “marrying that person,” the likely response you’ll get is, “I’m sorry.” You failed, and that’s a bad thing.
Mistakes may set you back for a while, but by no means are they a reason for thinking there’s no way you’ll ever recover. This rule was likely formed and carried out by people in charge of an assembly line (or who had an assembly line mentality).
If one is working on an assembly line, it can impact everyone down the line and also impact the quality of the product going down the line – so mistakes would be a problem you’d have to fix.
These ten rules should be examined for their relevance today and how you live, but not done away with altogether. They still have validity, and there are points you definitely want to bring into your life.
What are your thoughts?
Have you found success in breaking some Rules?
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