This is a translation I made from a blogg series on c-r.se. I've always loved this series and I'll translate the other parts too if I see an interest for it.

Rule 1: Accept everything as it is

I think this is a very good first rule. Not just when it comes to improving your game, but improving your life in general.

Read it again. Accept everything as it is.

Easy to say but often very hard to do. I think most of us sometimes wishes things in our life would be different. People spend their entire lives dreaming of something else, wishing they done something differently or just being bitter thinking life gave them bad cards... A completely useless strategy that will get them nowhere. It is also true that most people really do not want to be helped, they are comfortable in their problems and would rather make up excuses than actually make an effort to change their lives. As long as it's not your fault, you can't do anything about it, right?

But where does a strategy like that lead? It is possible that my life would be better if my parents had been billionaires, I looked like a model or was born as a natural gifted soccer player, but since that is not the case the only sensible strategy is to accept everything as it is, at any given opportunity, and then work on developing for the better from there. And to be honest, I don't think my life would have been better or worse if conditions had been different, it's not about the conditions, it's what you do with them...

I believe very strongly that you can only influence your situation when you can look at it clearly, with open eyes and accept it as it is. We often say that solving your problems is the easy part, the hard part is first to identify them, and second to admit them to yourself.

What areas of your life do you have difficulty accepting as they are? Is there anything you feel is unfair or parts of your life where you feel you had bad luck? Think about it for a bit and hold on to the answer till next time... - Victor, c-r.se