lessons i have learned

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I am a 33 year old woman who is married, owns a home and works a solid 9 to 5 job as an Events and Communications Coordinator. My husband and I are thinking about starting a family, working on our retirement savings plan and discussing taking a vacation in the near future. I went to college and got a 2-year diploma and he is successful with no post-secondary education but because he is the hardest worker I have ever met. He drives a pick-up truck and I drive a Honda Civic hatchback. We have one vehicle payment. Wow - sounds pretty standard and ... normal doesn't it??! But, it is our life and we have worked hard to build it to this point. It hasn't been an easy road - I have lost many loved ones along the way including my father, had my heart broken more than once by a "boy", I don't talk to my brother, I have 2 step-brothers and a step-sister somewhere out there in this world who I no longer have contact with, I have an anxiety disorder that I deal with every day and the list goes on and on and on ... as do all of our lists - it is what makes us human!

I think what differentiates our "stories" are the lessons we learn along the road that we take. Here are some of the lessons that I have learned and I find that now that I am a bit older (this side of 30) I learn new lessons each and every day so this list is organic and changes from day to day and even sometimes, minute to minute. What has your journey taught you?

1. Do not assume anything. Ever.
2. Be as consistent as possible when it becomes to your own personal rules and beliefs. When you go off track even once, people notice and you lose credibility.
3. Everyone deals with death differently. Respect that fact.
4. You can't change someone. You will try but you can't.
5. "The Secret" really isn't a secret at all but believe and trust it. Your thoughts become things and you choose your own happiness. You design your destiny. And if you are nice to others, they will be nice to you. You truly do get what you give out of life. Trust me.
6. I am not a believer in organized religion in any form and am still cultivating my thoughts on God, the after-life, etc. but I believe in the "10 Commandments". Live them.
7. It is 2012 and there is no such thing as job security any more. Keep that in mind when choosing a career and when entering your office door each morning.
8. I have been told that I don't have to like my boss, I need to respect them but the truth is, I usually like them but don't respect them in regards to the position they are in.
9. If a deal sounds too good to be true, it is.
10. If you are just this side of positive on the scale of 1 to 10, it IS a good day.
11. Treat your body like the temple it is. Respect it because it is all you have to take you through this life.
12. Read often.
13. Family is everything. Like it or not, it's the truth.
14. Technology is amazing and if you embrace it, it will make your life much easier. Embrace it and learn. 
15. Change is good. Always.

To be continued ...