The fourth agreement allows readers to have a better understanding of the progress made in achieving their goals in life. This agreement involves the integration of the first three agreements into daily life and the exploitation of its own potential. [8] It is a matter of doing the best that can be managed individually, which varies from the different situations and circumstances that the individual may encounter. Ruiz believes that if you judge yourself and do your best at all times, you will be able to avoid remorse. [10] By integrating the first three chords and doing the best in all facets of life, the individual will be able to lead a life without grief or self-awareness. [10] The Four Agreements© was published in 1997 and has sold about 9 million times. He has been on the New York Times bestseller list for nearly a decade. Everything we do is based on agreements we have made – agreements with ourselves, with other people, with God, with life. But the most important agreements are those we make with ourselves. In the first part of this 2-part video, we learn how the „domestication“ of men and how all the rules and values of our family and society are imposed on us by a system of punishment and reward. As young children, our true nature is to love and be happy, to explore and enjoy life; We are absolutely authentic.
But then we learn to be what others think we should, and because it`s not normal that we are who we are, we start pretending we`re not what we`re not. When we are teenagers, we have learned to judge ourselves, to punish ourselves and to reward ourselves after agreements that we have never chosen. The four agreements help us break self-limitation agreements and replace them with agreements that bring us freedom, happiness and love. „The Four Accords“ not only gave me the four chords by which I made small positive changes in my life, but the book also helped me understand the process of „domestication“ and how this „Domest“ shaped my belief systems. The book is based on a series of spiritual beliefs, held by Toltec`s seniors, to help readers transform their lives into a new experience of freedom, happiness and love. [4] According to the author, everything a man does is based on agreements he has made with himself, with others, with God and with life itself. [1] In these agreements, we can tell ourselves who they are, how to behave, what is possible and what is impossible. [1] Some agreements that create individuals may not cause problems, but there are certain arrangements that come from a place of fear and have the power to deplete emotional energy and reduce a person`s self-esteem. [1] The book states that these self-limiting agreements cause unnecessary suffering. [1] Ruiz also believes that to find personal joy, one must get rid of socially imposed and fear-based agreements that can unconsciously influence the individual`s behaviour and thinking. [5] Another fundamental premise of the book suggests that much of the suffering is created and that most people have the ability to transform themselves and the negative thoughts they have about the situations in their lives. [6] The author identifies the sources of unhappiness in life and proposes four beneficial agreements that can be concluded with oneself to improve their general state of well-being.