Many people believe you don’t need religion to have guiding principles and live a moral and productive life. Practicing compassion with the Dalai Lama doesn’t require you to join a religion or believe in religious dogma. With 18 daily empowering mindset exercises, he covers everything for modern living and wellness. It is far shorter than any of the sacred texts used by the major religions.
Let’s start with a quote from another respected thinker, Albert Einstein, to put things into perspective. Einstein defines what he believes is a modern, practical religious philosophy.
“The religion of the future will be a cosmic religion. It should transcend a personal God and avoid dogmas and theology. Covering both the natural and the spiritual, we should base it on a religious sense arising from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity. Buddhism answers this description.” — Albert Einstein
Transcending your personal God is another way of saying living life without a God, without an imaginary friend in the sky. The Dalai Lama (1) shows how it is possible to live a spiritual life without religion or belief in an imaginary friend.
Purposeful Living According to the Dalai Lama
Living on purpose means being aware and present, making choices that align with your values and goals. When you act with intent and purpose, you get the important things done. Daily empowering mindset exercises set the stage to engage in purposeful living.
The 18 excellent rules for living cover everything you need. These principles help you be authentic, present, and aware, which are important qualities of a healthy mindset. What is interesting is that they are absent any religious dogma and talk about imaginary friends and enemies. You don’t need to do them all every day, just one of the eighteen is enough to sustain positive growth. But, the more you do, the quicker you grow.
When he speaks about values, he uses a universal perspective, caring for the well-being of others, animals, and the environment. He omits sectarian religious beliefs or preferential treatment. Assessing the risk of love is another way of saying you understand the cost of living with courage.
We see many world leaders who refuse to accept responsibility for their decisions. We need to see leaders show consistency by living honorably. Wow! It’s a massive contrast from what we see from some political leaders on the world stage.
18 Daily Empowering Mindset Exercises
Tenzin Gyatso is the fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibetan Buddhism. When he was only two years old, they selected him for this role. As you read the 18 statements of his wisdom, you will see they are absent any references to religious dogma. His philosophy transcends religion and theology. These rules are both practical and spiritual.
The 18 points of this list cover every practical aspect of life, from personal and social concerns to global issues. These guidelines are a complete and concise philosophy for the future.
1. Practicing Compassion with the Dalai Lama
We’ve heard the saying that everything worth achieving takes effort. If the goal were easy to attain, it would be a result, not an accomplishment. Many worthwhile goals, a significant investment in time and resources, and success aren’t certain; there is still the risk of failure. Achieving a goal that is risky and hard to attain is a real accomplishment.
They say the same thing about love. It is better to love and lose than not love at all. Love is risky but worth it. The joy comes, in part, from the risk involved. Purposeful living, according to the Dalai Lama, often involves inverse relationships like this one. Compassion and love are a mindset, and there are several ways to cultivate it.
Daily Empowering Mindset Exercises
1. Observe your self-talk. If you learn to monitor your self-talk, you can avoid negative thinking and the downward slope of harmful tactics used on social media.
2. Express gratitude. Share your gratitude with those around you. It sounds like a cliche, but it really works. If you can’t express it to others, tell yourself. Write it down in your journal. The focus on gratitude shifts your mindset, sparking positive thinking.
3. Practice Affirmations and mantras. The use of affirmations and mantras is a practical strategy to boost your attitude and performance while strengthening your intuition and inner strength. Write key positive affirmations on stickies or say them to yourself. Affirmations and mantras will help you during the trials of life.
4. Creative visualization techniques are popular with athletes. If you watch the Olympics, you’ll see gymnasts “walking through their routines,” visualizing themselves accomplishing difficult skills. You can use this same technique in practical conversations.
5. Practice Kindness. Small acts of respect and kindness go a long way toward building positive relationships.
6. Meditate daily. Everyone knows meditation is healthy. It calms the mind and body. You don’t need to meditate for an hour; you only need less than a minute to calm the mind. Meditation is one of the daily empowering mindset exercises that successful people practice. The beginning two-step method is easy enough for a five-year-old to learn. You can, too.
7. Do Inner work. Using tools like the Enneagram and Repetitive Question Exercise will help you expose any harmful beliefs and values. It will expose limiting beliefs, bias, and prejudice. Then, you can remove them and replace them with positive scripts.
You don’t have to do inner work for hours to get results. Contemplate your answers from the Repetitive Question Exercise throughout the day. It takes no time at all and may give you new insight.
2. When you lose, don’t miss the lesson.
Risk involves the potential for failure and loss. We have all failed and lost something that we valued, but the actual loss is failing to grasp the lesson in the experience. Life is a place that provides you with opportunities to learn lessons that, if understood, can lead to wisdom. When we fail, stop and ask ourselves, what am I supposed to learn from this? Learn from the situation and use the insight to improve your life.
3. Follow the ABCs of respect, responsibility, and resiliency.
A. Respect for self
B. Respect for others
C. Responsibility for all your actions.
Promoting self-love and self-respect is an essential element of a healthy mindset. Healthy self-respect is an anchor for self-compassion, self-acceptance, and self-awareness. Practicing compassion with the Dalai Lama is a foundational element of modern living and wellness. Following this precept can change the trajectory of your life.
Respect for others includes all living things on the planet. The environment needs our kind attention and care. Respect for the Earth means ensuring we do our part to safeguard its resources for future generations to enjoy.
Accepting responsibility for your actions is difficult, but facing the consequences bolsters your self-respect. Others will also respect you more for taking responsibility.
Resiliency is the mindset to withstand pressure and recover quickly. It is the ability to adapt successfully. You’ll need this quality to act respectfully and responsibly. The ABCs are daily empowering mindset exercises that build your integrity.
4. Not getting what we want is sometimes a wonderful stroke of luck.
What we want isn’t always what we need. This is another one of the mysterious rules for living life that we can miss. We don’t always get what we want, and it is the best thing that could happen. However, we do not grasp this as a fortunate turn of events when it’s happening. In retrospect, we see how a loss is a blessing in disguise. It may take some time, even years, before you discover it was a stroke of luck.
5. Learn the rules so you know how to break them.
Be careful with this proposition. If you break a rule, you need to consider the potential consequences. There are often unintended ramifications that can act like an avalanche. The moral dilemma of breaking the rules for the right reasons still has effects and consequences. To learn regulations thoroughly, delve into the reasons behind them, and then weigh their justification against the greater moral good.
As you awaken, you will become more aware of social and environmental injustices. Have the courage to do what you can within your circle of influence. Listen to your intuition. Do not ignore your gut instinct.
Some people say that his philosophy advocates anarchy. The 18 rules of living by the Dalai Lama do not promote lawlessness. Instead, it supports changing unjust systems.
6. Don’t let a minor dispute injure a great friendship.
Don’t throw away years of a great friendship over a dispute. The more you awaken from the culture’s collective sleep, the more you distance yourself from those still asleep. So, it’s easy to find conflict with old friends, so consider what battles are deal breakers that end a relationship.
First, assess whether it is a great friendship. Ask yourself, what is the common thread that brought us together? Do you still share the common thread? If the common thread no longer exists, it might not be a great friendship. But if there is still some tiny thread that connects you, find some way to preserve the relationship. If the differences of opinion are of high moral value, then if they can not be resolved, ending the relationship may be the right choice.
Instead of ending a strained relationship, give it space. Take a time-out. That way, you can plant seeds while maintaining the relationship. It may require minimizing social media contacts or skirting religious and political topics. Sometimes, it’s possible, sometimes not.
7. When you make a mistake, take immediate steps to correct it.
An apology goes a long way. Don’t let pride or selfishness stop you from repairing a relationship. We are all human, and we all make mistakes. Make it a personal goal to admit when you are wrong and apologize quickly. Taking responsibility for your actions will build a solid reputation — this is practical advice for mindset growth that pays off immediately.
It takes courage, but the benefits outweigh the risks. This is the best way to repair the relationship, which also increases your self-respect. See rule 3.
8. Spend time alone daily.
Don’t overlook the healthy need for solitude and time alone. Even a few minutes of silence or meditation will calm and recharge your mind. Practice simple mindfulness, meditation, and exercises. They take very little time and make you more effective in your daily affairs.
Mindfulness meditation is easy to learn. You can use it at any time and for any length of time. It’s like restarting your computer or handheld device. Just a minute of silence will benefit your overall health and wellness. Remember, your brain is a computer, and you reset it now and then to make it operate efficiently. Rules for living life don’t need to be difficult.
9. Be open to change, but don’t let go of positive, progressive values.
Being open to change is practical because everything changes. So, learn the proper coping skills to deal with it.
Embracing change is a necessary ability in a world where the rate of change speeds up. You need to know the difference between accepting change and your values. It is equally important to understand the difference between cultural and personal values.
Cultural values result from programming via religion and other institutions. Personal values are internal and part of us all. Sharing and caring are universal. If you don’t want it done to you, don’t do it to someone else.
10. Remember that silence is sometimes the best answer.
We have two ears and one mouth, so listen more than you talk. When you speak, you repeat what you already know. If you listen, you might learn something new. Silence is one of the best strategies in any conflict. It gives you time to think.
Silence can make some people uncomfortable because they are used to filling the space with chatter. It’s one of the 18 rules of living by the Dalai Lama that will help to bring truth to the forefront.
11. Live an honorable life and enjoy it a second time through memory.
Living with honor and credibility doesn’t mean you won’t make mistakes in judgment. So, don’t forget rule 7. Learn to apologize with heartfelt emotion. Doing the best you can is all you can do. Magnify the memories where you showed honor and courage, standing up for those who cannot help themselves. Remember the lessons from your failures.
Learn to use your memory as a source of inspiration. Magnify the good and reduce the negative emotions associated with your memories. When you do this, put things in the proper perspective.
12. Create a loving atmosphere at home.
You may not have grown up in a loving atmosphere, so you may not have any practical experience you can model. Start now. It begins with your attitude. Practicing compassion with the Dalai Lama is centered on daily empowering mindset exercises like this one about our home.
Create an environment for yourself, which is positive. Surround yourself with things that make you happy and bring peace. Play your favorite music. Read books. Fill your surroundings with plants. Place memorable decorative objects where you can see them.
Create an altar with things that bring you fond memories and ground you. If possible, make your entire room or home a sanctuary from the world. Create a place that is restful and rejuvenating. The Dalai Lama’s 18 rules of living are grounded in peace, which is why you need a sanctuary where you can recharge your batteries.
13. In discussions, deal with one issue. Don’t bring up the past.
In disagreements with loved ones, deal only with the current situation. Don’t bring up the past. Working through conflicts without damaging the relationship can be difficult, so stick with one issue at a time. Trust is a foundation for healthy relationships. By practicing compassion with the Dalai Lama, we can maintain perspective when faced with conflicting viewpoints.
See rule 7 again. Holding a grudge hurts only you. Don’t let the past hurt you repeatedly. You can’t change the past. Learn to focus on what you can change in the present.
14. Share your knowledge. It’s a way to achieve immortality.
Sharing is an integral part of your spiritual growth in our blended learning process. We never know when something we share could inspire positive change in someone’s life. Sharing your knowledge helps others and fulfills your need to serve. Giving to others is one of the daily empowering mindset exercises that opens our hearts and makes us more empathetic.
15. Be gentle with the Earth.
We would have put this rule higher on the list since Earth is our only habit. There isn’t a backup planet. It makes no sense to pollute and destroy it for the short-term gain of making money. We must be honorable caretakers and prioritize the environment as the rightful possession of all living beings. Reduce your carbon footprint by recycling. Please help everyone keep it clean.
16. Once a year, go to some place you’ve never been to before.
Visit new places, especially new cultures. It can expand your perspective and broaden your experiences. Expose yourself to different cultures, people, and ways of life. Exploring and making memories will become your veritable treasures.
Sometimes, you don’t need to go far to find some place new, but the farther away you go, the greater your chances of new cultural experiences.
17. In Healthy relationships, love for each other exceeds the need.
There is a difference between wanting to be with someone and needing to be someone. Wanting something implies choosing, while need means a lack of volition. Needs are often signs of unhealthy compulsions that can never be satisfied.
18. Judge your success by what you had to give up to get it.
The wisdom here is not to give up all of your time and energy to have things. Many people are used up and burned out by corporate culture. They have a lot of new things but are depressed and unhealthy. Sound familiar? Don’t get caught up in the corporate rat race. Don’t give up your life for objects.
Conclusion
The 18 daily empowering mindset exercises are guiding principles that don’t require joining a religion. By the way, this isn’t the only source for guiding principles without religion. Check out this link.
References
(1) The Dalai Lama, Wikipedia