The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: Overview of the Pyramid and Its Levels
What’s your reason for being? Are you constantly learning from your environment to improve yourself? Have you created a near-impenetrable support system? Are you taking your career success for granted? Do show compassion to others in times of crisis? These are fundamental questions that this series hopes to help you answer for yourself.
But first, why does the hierarchy pyramid have six levels? Were there criteria for each level? Similar to Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, each level is built on the preceding one. I tend to think in terms of frameworks and paradigms like Venn diagrams, pyramids, and other tools that help me process my thoughts.
After I wrote the rules down on note cards, I moved them around to see a pattern, and then realized that my rules fell into these six categories:
- Level 1: Rules for Our Fundamental Nature
- Level 2: Rules of Continuous Learning and Modeling
- Level 3: Rules for the Actual Journey
- Level 4: Rules of Adapting to Environment and Interacting with Others
- Level 5: Rules of Humility
- Level 6: Rule of Being
Level 1: Rules for Our Fundamental Nature
The first layer reflects the basic requirements that me must understand and incorporate why we’re here, what we’re supposed to do with our life, why we think we have free will or not, why we need to be proactive in life and work, why being good isn’t over rated, and why we should always help others.
Level 2: Rules of Continuous Learning and Modeling
The second level discusses how to nurture your need to strive for self-improvement; become aware of oneself that includes one’s traits, feelings, and behaviors; accept responsibility of your actions and their consequences; and being a source of strength for others.
Level 3: Rules for the Actual Journey
Built on continuous learning, the third level provides rules for the journey itself. There are times when we don’t know how to get to where we need to be. Sometimes we need to adjust or tweak the journey itself.
It also recommends that we create and nurture a support system of friends and family that helps you along the way. Also, this journey is riddled with challenges because we’re either an extrovert or an introvert.
Level 4: Rules of Adapting to Environment and Interacting with Others
The fourth level outlines why we must adapt and strategically interact with others. Of course, this level relies on level 2, where we’ve learned and incorporated self awareness, so we can admit our weaknesses and be honest about how the journey hasn’t turned out as planned. In being self aware, we can course correct.
While we’re adapting to life, we face challenges of interacting with others. Some people may use power plays over us in life and work. This level recommends that the best defense is a good offense by mastering our emotions and using body language to our advantage.
Level 5: Rules of Humility
As we progress in life and work, it becomes more important to humble. How should we do this? By never taking our success for granted and always having a Plan B or C. More importantly, experience and wisdom teaches us that we should never be arrogant.
Level 6: Rule of Being
Is level six enlightenment? Perhaps. Some people are naturally compassionate. Some people are damaged because of their childhood traumas. The rule of compassion is the capstone of your life and career. It’s never easy to be compassionate. Sometimes, there’s a fine line between being compassionate and being taken advantage of by the person you’re trying to be compassionate with. This rule takes vigilance and may take a lifetime to master.
So, that explains the six levels of the Smart Lemming Pyramid: Rules of Life & Career Management.
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The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management series outlines my rules of personal and work success. After reflecting on my personal values, I made this list, realizing values are my rules of being or life management principles. Based on your experiences, I hope this list inspires you to identify your own rules. Here are the rules to my success that may help you over the course of your journey:
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: Overview of the Pyramid and Its Levels
Level 1: Rules for Our Fundamental Nature
- #1 Find your own spirituality and practice it.
- #2 Know what you want or the Universe (or God) won’t know what to send you: If you don’t know what you want, how can you get to where you want to be?
- #3 Fate or free will? Regardless of what you believe, we all have a purpose to being here. The tricky part is discovering what it is.
- #4 Don’t wait for your future to happen to you, you have to be vigilant in making your future happen.
- #5 Understand your dark side, but don’t give into it or indulge it.
- #6 Aspire to always help and teach others.
Level 2: Rules of Continuous Learning and Modeling
- #7 Watch or read media sources when you need inspiration. Reflect on why you like a certain movie or TV show, so you understand why it moves you.
- #8 Always be learning. Continue learning through books or any source that gives you new ideas on how to approach your work or feeds your passion.
- #9 Become self aware. If you aren’t, then how will you know you’re screwing up?
- #10 Accept responsibility and make peace with your decisions and the consequences of those decisions. They have created the person you are today. The trick is, do you like what you’ve created? If not, then how can you change?
- #11 Keep a lid on chaos. Never let situations or emotions get away from you. Be the calm in the eye of the storm as strength, reflecting confidence for the most vulnerable people in your life.
Level 3: Rules for the Actual Journey
- #12 Stay still and don’t move if you feel lost, so you can find yourself or let the opportunity find you.
- #13 Always be course correcting.
- #14 Surround yourself with trusted and loyal friends. Be prepared to deal with betrayal without ambivalence. But be prepare to forgive (if the person is sincere, I mean really sincere).
- #15 Learn to channel your inner extrovert, if you’re an introvert. Learn to channel your inner introvert, if you’re an extrovert.
Level 4: Rules of Adapting to Environment and Interacting with Others
- #16 Make peace with your weaknesses. We’re not perfect. Even your strengths will turn into weaknesses. The trick is knowing when your strength has become a weakness.
- #17 Master your emotions and body language. Use them strategically in life and work.
- #18 Mentor yourself via the Space Time Continuum. What would your future self tell your present self? How can you get back on track? What have you done well? What more can you do? What would you tell yourself as a child, teen, 20 or 30 something?
Level 5: Rules of Humility
- #19 Never take your success for granted. Always prepare for the worst case scenarios. Be prepared for two steps forward and one step back.
- #20 Be humble. Treat others well, don’t be arrogant, and don’t drink your own Kool-Aid.
Level 6: Rule of Being
- #21 Be compassionate.
Similar Posts:
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: #10 Accept Responsibility for Your Decisions
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: #6 Aspire to always help and teach others
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: #4 Be Vigilant in Making your Future Happen
- The Smart Lemming Rules of Life and Career Management: #9 Become Self Aware
Hi Smart Lemming, like this series. It reminds me of the happiness series (thanks BTW, I enjoyed it). I would add one of my rules which is “think before you speak.” I used to talk too much. I’d get in trouble for not thinking about the ramifications. Looking forward to your rules. More rules to come.