I’m a Rule Breaker

As a human being living on the Earth, you are constantly bombarded with warnings from the time you are born until the time your life here ends. People tell you the rules and the tiny gray area, acceptable behavior and what is not. Some were designed to keep you physically safe, but many were designed to keep you from being original or standing out in any way.

Looking at all of those rules I have had stated, explained, written, and spelled out for me, I am here to urge you to do something dangerous. Please ignore all of the stuff you have been warned away from and break the rules because, in the end, that may be the only way you can find your true identity and create something great.

The Beginning of the Problem

When you are a child, the adults in your life are most often going to warn you about all of the “bad” things that could happen to you if you are not careful. Warnings about touching the stove, playing with fire, jumping out the window, or any other common-sense activity are more than likely going to fall on deaf ears anyway.

How many children have taken the warnings of imminent danger as a call for adventure? I know that many of my most lasting learning experiences resulted from just this type of situation. My parents always warned me about burning myself on the cigarette lighter in the car. That only led me to touch the cigarette lighter in the car when it was orange; you know what I learned? Please don’t do that. It hurts, and I never did it again. Experience is the most excellent teacher.

As I grew up, though, it seemed that other people wanted the adventurous spirit to leave me, and I started to take people’s word for things and started doing exactly what society expected of me because I wanted to fit in.

To hell with what you feel, go to school, get a job, buy a house, retire, then die. That is the appropriate life path we are taught. I was the right person, but I never had adventures and never did anything outside of my expectations. Things were safe, but they were not very interesting. I was more concerned with what other people thought of me than what I felt about myself. That is an equation that can’t exist forever.

Wake up before it’s too late

Much like being trapped in a dream, where you are falling, and you know you will wake up before you hit the ground, and even though your heart is beating fast, you know it wasn’t real. That is how life happens sometimes; a traumatic experience occurs, a death in the family, a loss of a job, divorce, or poverty. It causes you to experience a shift in your paradigm that changes you in profound and often beautiful ways. You, in effect, wake up and look at yourself and see that not only are you not living your dreams, but you have also forgotten what they were! This will lead you to realize that there must be changes.

Looking at the path, you have been following; you suddenly see that you are not yourself; you are not what you were born to be. You wake up and need answers. I think some look for help in unhealthy relationships, and some look for a chemical solution, but no matter your reaction, you know that just like when you left childhood things behind, you can’t go back to the way things were before. It would be like going back to the dream and completing the fall to your death. Not acceptable.

Why Are You Here?

You are not just here to fill up the space you are in. That would be a meaningless existence, and you are not just here to sleepwalk through your life. You are here to inspire, to teach, to change, to be an example. Life shouldn’t be taken as an opportunity to tell others the rules, what they should do, what they should not do. Life is an opportunity to be an example of what is true to you. Some will accept your life and get your message, while others will likely think you are crazy. There is someone out there that needs your unique personality and talents. Be that person!

You weren’t born to make a difference to everybody, but you are here to make a difference to somebody. Whoever that is, right now, is looking for your example of change, and it is up to you to provide it. You may never know just how many lives you touch, but that doesn’t make your impact any less critical. The rules of life will tell you where to work, how you should look, and what it is appropriate to say.

Most of the most significant accomplishments in the history of man were achieved by people who didn’t follow these types of constrained expectations. You are here for a purpose, find it, and then pursue it. If you are not sure, be yourself and see what happens.

Dare To Dream

I was once asked if I were to pursue anything that I wanted, what would that be? I realized that I was in deep trouble at that point because I didn’t have a dream. In my past, I was an empty vessel, like a marionette with someone else pulling my strings, a facade of a person. There was no burning desire, no call to greatness, and there was a loud and ominous……………nothing.

That was the beginning of my awakening because I believed life had to have more of a point than exist, spend money, and acquire things. I began to dream.

At first, just little dreams that I almost felt guilty about. Then as I continued to see the power that dreams possess and the strength that you can take from them, I started to have bigger plans. These dreams have become fuel. To search, share my thoughts, to search for a purpose to be a better person.

Many people are lucky enough to realize this power early in life, but some do not become aware until much later. Dare to dream. Whether you achieve your dreams or not should be a part of the adventure of life. The pursuit of a goal is often the real thrill anyway.

I was once told that if you never try, you will never know, and that is the case in following your dreams. The rules will tell you where you should go and what you should do. Your dreams will tell you where you want to go and what you want to do.

The One Person You Can Believe In

When it is all said and done, there is going to be one person that either always came through for you or ultimately let you down. That person is you. Believe in yourself, that you can do whatever it is you set out to do. There will be struggles and times of doubt that are part of being human. That doesn’t mean that you should stop trying to achieve or stop trying to reach for the greatness you dream about.

You have a light inside of you that is unique to you, and nobody else can touch it or take it away from you. Life often makes people forget their strength, as they allow bad experiences and bad luck to dictate their behavior. All of the should haves, would haves, could haves of life force people to doubt themselves and forget how great they are.

You can rediscover who you are, and your passion by not living up to a stereotype thrust upon you by others and creating a life that makes you happy. Ignore the so-called conventional, and follow your inner voice that knows exactly where you should be and what you should be doing. The rules will tell you to make as much money as possible, and you will be happy. The truth tells you to be as comfortable as possible, and it won’t matter how much money you have. Many wealthy people are depressed because it doesn’t fill your heart or nourish your soul no matter how much money you collect.

No matter what you decide to do in the end, if you at least consider breaking the rules of convention and following the path you should be on all along, the world will be a better place for it.

“Once you have your basics down, you can start breaking the rules. “- Author: Tom Colicchio

“I like breaking the rules.” – Author: Lexa Doig

“Breaking rules is indeed an important part of creativity. Innovation needs a level of guidance.” – Author: Pearl Zhu

“You don’t become a success by breaking the rules. You don’t become a success by obeying the rules. You become a success by inventing the rules.” – Author: Chloe Thurlow