Book Summary: If Life is a Game, These are the Rules

This #1 New York Times bestseller offers some useful and understandable advice that can be applied to many situations. The idea of life as a series of lessons can help to put things into perspective and add to anyone's ability to deal with setbacks and reach their full potential.

Rule one - You will receive a body Acceptance or rejection of your body only carries weight in your own mind, and your perception has no bearing on how your body actually looks, so why not choose the ease of acceptance rather than the pain of rejection? The choice is yours.

Rule two - You will be presented with lessons Each day in the school of life you will be presented with all the lessons that you specifically need to learn, whether you choose to learn them or not is entirely up to you. See these lessons as gifts, or guides along your path toward living as your authentic self.

Rule three - There are no mistakes, only lessons Growth is a process of experimentation, a series of trials, errors, victories and setbacks. The failed experiments are as much a part of the process as the experiments that work. Without lessons, it is difficult to convert mistakes into valuable learning opportunities.

Rule four - A lesson is repeated until learned Lessons will be repeated to you in various forms until you have learned them. When you have learned them, you can then go on to the next lesson.

Rule five - Learning does not end Your journey on earth is constantly unfolding, and while your wisdom grows and your capacity to deal with challenges expands, new lessons will present themselves. Lessons will be around as long as you live.

Rule six - There is no better than here This rule encourages you to live fully in the present. When your 'there' has become a 'here', you will simply obtain a there that will look better to you than your present here. Live in the 'here and now'. Avoid the continuous cycle of longing.

Rule seven - Others are only mirrors of you You cannot love or hate something about another person unless it reflects something you love or hate about yourself. See the qualities that you admire in others as characteristics that you have already embraced in yourself, allow them to illuminate more clearly your own feelings of self-worth.

Rule eight - What you make of your life is up to you You have all the tools and resources you need. What you do with them is up to you.

Rule nine - Your answers lie inside of you All you need to do is look, listen and trust. Many answers to life's problems are available by trusting your intuition and listening to the 'little voices' in your head.

Rule ten - You will forget all of this at birth Create ways to find your way back to your truth when you forget. Surround yourself with people who know your personal truth and are familiar with your authentic self. They can help keep you rooted.

Key thoughts:

"Be more concerned with your character than your reputation, because characte is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are." -John Wooden, college basketball coach

"Although they only give gold medals in the field of athletics, I encourage everyone to look into themselves and find their own personal dream, whatever that may be - sports, medicine, law, business, music, writing, whatever. The same principles apply. Turn your dream into a goal and learn how to attack that goal systematically. Break it into bite-size chunks that seem possible, and then don't give up. Just keep plugging away." - John Naber, swimmer, four-time Olympic Gold Medalist

By: Regine Azurin

Regine Azurin is the President of BestSummaries.com, a company that provides book summaries of the latest motivational, inspirational, self-help and personality development bestsellers.

http://www.bestsum.com Free Book Summaries of Top Self-help, Motivational and Inspirational books

Mailto: freearticle@bestsum.com BestSummaries is a BestSummaries.com service. (c) Copyright 2004, BestSummaries.com

---

Words Have Power

How many times have you heard or read that words... Read More

That First Step To Massive Success

Do you ever procrastinate? So do I!I had some work... Read More

A Turning Point

19 years ago, I was a young working mother at... Read More

Stick With the Winners

Here is an interesting quotation from Stephen Walsh."We're building up... Read More

Increase Your Energy!

It was only about 18 months ago that I could... Read More

A Perfect World ... Imbalance Creates Motivation

I am a big proponent of balance. Everything has to... Read More

Its Never Too Late To Start

Many people never start anything because they think the bus... Read More

Self-Motivation for Trainers

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SELF-MOTIVATION FOR TRAINERS: Lack of self-motivation is... Read More

4 Qualities of Highly Successful People

What if you can be, do or have anything you... Read More

Move On!

I woke up one morning with a sharp pain in... Read More

No Excuses

Don't you just hate it when people make excuses for... Read More

Procrastination: Hypnosis Can Help You Overcome It

I recently saw a t-shirt with the following saying: "Procrastinate... Read More

Life?s an Illusion

I'll get right to the point. Life is not necessarily... Read More

One Last Month to Make it Count!

Can you believe it, summer is almost over. Did you... Read More

The Seven Keys to Motivation

Motivation. It's a complicated subject that is studied by many... Read More

Motivation: 3 Powerful Quotes from Golfer Tiger Woods

I am not a golfer, unless you count an occasional... Read More

Motivation - The Power of Drive

My experience tells me there are three stages people go... Read More

Limitations Real Or Imagined, Stick Em In A Pigs Eye!

It's about time to take a real hard look at... Read More

Resolution Revolution: 3 Tips For Creating Real Change in the New Year

'Tis the season once again for parties, champagne, noisemakers...and of... Read More

How To Be Motivated Without A Motivator

Many professionals spend their entire careers working under managers or... Read More

Regret or Passion? Which Will Be Yours?

I once attended a retreat on how to live with... Read More

After the Big Project: Recovering From Success

My older daughter got married 10 days ago. The wedding... Read More

Seeing Through the Pain

We must all suffer one of two things: the pain... Read More

Rebirth from the Ashes

The legend of the phoenix can actually be found... Read More

Define Your Own Future - Shatter The Crystal Ball!

When I decided to look into remote viewing, I had... Read More

STOP! Reading the Headlines and Live Your Own Life First

Imagine! 40 is old. The California State Supreme Court has... Read More

How Do I Stop Procrastinating?

Often times we procrastinate because it just seems like so... Read More

Quick Steps To Help You Take Action Now

Need to move ahead and yet find yourself holding back?Edward... Read More

Is Work Still Necessary?

I have a confession to make - several confessions in... Read More

Employee Motivation Checklist - Ten Measures of Success

In the form of a simple easy to use checklist,... Read More

Do I have What It takes?

What am I made of? Do I have what it... Read More

Seven Aspects of Making Brilliant Decisions: The Relationship Between Work and Self

Workweek: an opportunity for discovering and shaping; the place where... Read More

Making A Lot Out Of A Little - Use It Or Lose It

"Making a lot out of a little"Ever noticed how some... Read More