Have a personal constitution

The Zimbabwean Constitution is a collection of principles that lay the foundation for how the country governs itself. This means that no matter what happens to it, regardless of war, economic meltdown or natural disasters, Zimbabweans continue to operate in the same manner as that defined when the Constitution was adopted This country can rebuild its infrastructure, rewrite its laws, and redeem its worth, by using its Constitution as the guideline. This document will be referenced when laws are created, amended or repealed, when the courts make decisions on cases, and even when politicians justify their political actions.

A personal constitution is a declaration of the core values which define an individual within any circumstance. It contains the principles by which one lives by regardless of what happens.

Despite relationship break-ups, death of loved ones, or significant loss of wealth, one would still live by the same set of principles that bring them peace and fulfilment. The wonderful thing about realising what brings me internal peace and fulfilment is that I immediately know how to resolve or avoid conflict, I then know what to do and how to do it.

When I have a personal constitution, envisioning, goal setting and implementation becomes easy and achievable.
Unfortunately, many people live without having worked out their core values. For these people, life is an eternal roller-coaster of emotional highs and lows. Many of them are in a constant state of unhappiness and never seem to be fulfilled. You probably know someone who is constantly complaining about their lives no matter how good their situation seems to be.

They complain about their spouses or job, so they leave and find something new, only to complain about the new thing. They continue to moan about a circumstance day after day, and yet refuse to break a pattern of behaviour that causes the circumstance.

These are people who have not figured out what gives them internal peace, so they carry on allowing the external circumstances to dictate their behaviour. These people do not have a compass to guide them through life. A personal constitution is the foundation on which you build SUCCESS.

This week, discover your core values. Figure out what brings you internal peace and fulfilment. Write these principles out on a piece of paper, or type it into a file. You don’t have to show anyone, but by writing it out, you reinforce these principles to yourself. It’s a declaration of who you are and what ideals will guide your every action. This list will be different for every person, so what you write will be uniquely yours. It will be your personal constitution.

Nyaradzo Mavindidze, a motivational speaker, is the Managing Consultant at Avodah Consultants, which specialises in soft skills training and coaching. For feedback email [email protected]