If you were to ask my two boys (my little girl is still a work in progress) what the Moulton creed was, they would say the following:
Always Positive, Never Quit, Never be Afraid, No Regrets, Always do what is Right!
This little saying (creed) has turned out to be a very effective parenting tool with our kids. When my 8 year old is having a hard time with wanting to do a chore, school work, or generally not getting what he wants, it is really easy to nicely remind (well, nicely most of the time) him of the first and last part of the creed. It also works for most other parenting “opportunities” as well. While this creed is helpful in parenting and many other areas, it is the most helpful in my own self-leadership.
Let me start by saying that I am not telling you I have it all together and that I live out these five phrases perfectly. It is not even close to perfect. I will say these five phrases have helped guide me closer to the man God wants me to be. I ask myself questions like these: What is driving your daily decisions? What is something you can come back to when things are not going well or you just don’t feel like doing something you know you should?
Lets face it. Self-leadership is hard. It might be the hardest of all types of leadership. Generally speaking, nobody else knows if you “slip” on something you know you should or shouldn’t be doing. Having a quick easy phrase to come back to makes it easier to: eat correctly, go to the gym, limit screen time, read good books, listen to uplifting podcasts, not procrastinate, and read the Bible. These are the little daily things we know help improve our lives.
There are a few practical things you can do to make and keep a creed.
- Keep it simple. Don’t overthink it. Don’t make it so long or complicated that it will never pop into your mind.
- Make it meaningful to you.
- Focus mostly on foundational and/or growth ideas.
- Write it down and read it daily (or say it once you have it memorized).
- Share it with someone else. Accountability is an amazing thing.
Good luck in creating your own creed. My prayer is you use your newly created creed to further your own self leadership and bring you closer to the person God is calling you to be.
Leave No Doubt – Think. Love. Share
Bonus Thought – Here is a picture of my whole creed written out with the Bible verses. For us Christians, it is important for our foundational items be grounded in God’s word!
