The New 7 Deadly Sins
The seven deadly sins were made famous by Dante Alighieri in his epic poem “The Divine Comedy.”
The seven sins are lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, and pride.
Dante listed them to keep people in line and on the right path during the 1300’s.
Many people still avoid the temptations of these sins today, but now there are more “deadly” sins to avoid.
1. Waiting to be happy
One of the biggest misconceptions ever is that once you’re successful, once you own a house, when you have a lot of money, or once you’re retired, you’ll finally be happy.
But the truth is, you need happiness to achieve all of that in the first place.
There’s an excellent text by Crystal Boyd from her book “Happiness is a Journey.” It reminds readers to not wait to be happy. And she does so in a really profound way that everyone can relate to. I recommend you read the text. You can do so here: http://www.crystalboyd.com/
Remember, the longer you wait to be happy the less time you’ll actually have to be happy.
2. Achieving success without helping others
If you truly want to be successful then you can’t focus your entire efforts on yourself. You must help other people achieve their goals and their own success.
There’s an old saying that the road to success is lonely, but it won’t be when you help others.
3. Belittling the dreams of others
Your dreams aren’t superior to any other person’s dreams.
4. Complacency
It’s one thing to be satisfied with what you have, but it’s another story when you’ve completely settled.
When you settle and don’t create any new dreams to go after, you’ve basically given up.
5. Not questioning
One of the greatest things we can do for ourselves is to question our lives and things in it as much as possible.
Questions like:
- Why me?
- Why not me?
- Do I really love what I’m doing?
We don’t need to have the answers right away, but we must keep thinking.
6. Not attempting to change the world
Changing the world is not as hard as it may seem. Even if you change the community and world around you, you’re doing a lot. Simple acts can create drastic change.
7. Fearing
The whole point of the original seven deadly sins was to instill fear in people. But living in fear isn’t living.
Even if you’ve committed some of these sins don’t fear; acknowledging you’ve done so is all the forgiveness you need.
There could be countless more sins. Have any sins you’d like to share? Are you or were you guilty of any of these sins? Please share in the comments below.
Related articles:
- 50 things to say before you die
- 75 questions to ask yourself
- Escaping Cape Fear: 9 Ways To Not Let Fear Stop You
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26 Responses to “The New 7 Deadly Sins”
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Andrew – beautiful post! You are so wise beyond your years! It is amazing how wisdom grows with intentional study. To me, that is what your blog illustrates! Your posts make my days more insight – each a lesson because I am awake.
All the best, Jamie
Thanks so much Jamie! That means a lot. I’m happy my posts can make you think a little and brighten your day. Comments like yours keep me writing
-Andrew
hey;
in my opinion, questioning, espeially “why me” is not always good. “why me” makes you struggling and unhappy with your situation; from my point of view at least.
anyways, great post
Hey Benny,
I understand what you mean. It depends on when you’re asking questions like that. If it’s right after a bad event then it’s not good, but if you’re in the right mindset if can be good.
I recommend you check out this post for better questions to ask: http://www.lyved.com/life/75-questions-to-ask-yourself/
Glad you liked the post anyway!
-Andrew
1. Waiting to be happy
People aren’t waiting, they’re working. Most people are not happy until they reach financial freedom. Most people are miserable living in a crappy apartment with no money in their bank accounts.
2. Achieving success without helping others
Helping others is foolish if you yourself are in a bad situation. How can you help other succeed if
you’re a failure?
3. Belittling the dreams of others
You’re dreaming of sugar plum fairies while I’m dreaming of world peace. Yes, my dreams can be better than yours.
4. Complacency
Maintaining your life in not complacency, it often takes a lot of hard work.
5. Not questioning
Self doubt leads you down the path to nowhere. Confidence comes from understanding and if you’re
still asking questions, you have a long way to go before you reach that confidence.
6. Not attempt to change the world
The world is much more complex than you think. Even the most influential people in history couldn’t stop mankind from overpopulating the planet and destroying its ecosystems. Perhaps you misunderstand what it means to change the entire world? Or maybe you just don’t realize that everyone shapes the world in their own small way, whether they want to or not. Change yourself and you change the world.
7. Fearing
People don’t fear sin, they fear the punishment. Forgiveness neither prevents nor solves anyone’s problems. Take responsibility for your actions and accept that you need to change for the better.
Hey Don,
Thanks so much for your responses!
They were great to read and I enjoyed responding to each of them.
“1. Waiting to be happy
People aren’t waiting, they’re working. Most people are not happy until they reach financial freedom. Most people are miserable living in a crappy apartment with no money in their bank accounts.”
The thing is; if you’re not happy without money you’re not going to be happy with it. Financial freedom can bring happiness, but you have a better chance of bringing it to yourself and to the people around you.
When I was young, most of my years were spent in a one bedroom “crappy” apartment with my single mother who had no money in the bank. Sure, there were days when we were said, but we always cracked jokes at our situation and had A LOT of laughs and fun. I wasn’t very old when I said this, but I told my mother once “We might not have a lot of money but we sure do laugh a lot.”
Being negative and POed because of your crappy apartment is going to accomplish a damn thing. And hell, at least you have a roof over your head. I can’t even imagine living on the streets in these freezing temperatures.
“2. Achieving success without helping others
Helping others is foolish if you yourself are in a bad situation. How can you help other succeed if
you’re a failure?”
Helping others doesn’t just mean donating money. So if you’re in a bad financial situation then you should worry about your family first. But there are thousands of great people that are probably way poorer than you who are working at soup kitchens, creating fundraisers, and just helping others.
You don’t have to be a millionaire. Even just being there for someone and listening to them can change their life. Sure we have our own problems, but someone ALWAYS has it worse-off.
“3. Belittling the dreams of others
You’re dreaming of sugar plum fairies while I’m dreaming of world peace. Yes, my dreams can be better than yours.”
I’m not talking about daydreams of fairies. I’m talking about dreams of hope, dreams of a better life. NO ONE has the right to belittle a person’s dreams when they are of that nature.
“4. Complacency
Maintaining your life in not complacency, it often takes a lot of hard work.”
Sure, it can take a lot of hard work. But accepting that you have to live a certain way for your entire life is complacent.
“5. Not questioning
Self doubt leads you down the path to nowhere. Confidence comes from understanding and if you’re
still asking questions, you have a long way to go before you reach that confidence.”
This isn’t about self-doubt, it’s about self-reflection. You need to look at your past and present, to align yourself for the future.
“6. Not attempt to change the world
The world is much more complex than you think. Even the most influential people in history couldn’t stop mankind from overpopulating the planet and destroying its ecosystems. Perhaps you misunderstand what it means to change the entire world? Or maybe you just don’t realize that everyone shapes the world in their own small way, whether they want to or not. Change yourself and you change the world.”
I mentioned that in the post:
‘Even if you change the community and world around you, you’re doing a lot. Simple acts can create drastic change.’
“7. Fearing
People don’t fear sin, they fear the punishment. Forgiveness neither prevents nor solves anyone’s problems. Take responsibility for your actions and accept that you need to change for the better.”
Forgiveness doesn’t solve problems but it sure helps you move on.
-Andrew
Dante didnt make up the 7 Deadly Sins, they were talked about in the Catholic church before him. Also, they weren’t meant to instill fear any more than a ‘caution: wet floor sign’ is. Eating too much is unhealthy, letting anger (wrath) rule how you act is sometimes dangerous (look at 9/11), having so much jealousy that you obsess over something someone has every single day is unhealthy, being a narcissist is dangerous because if people don’t respect you, they most likely wont help you if you’re in trouble and might actually kill you if you make the wrong person mad, being overly greedy can be dangerous because you can lose everything trying to get everything (look at gamblers), Lust is dangerous, because if you go after the wrong man’s wife without caring that she’s married… well some men kill over that, and laziness is dangerous, because if you don’t do anything your body will settle and that is actually known to cause health problems now. and sometimes its hard to see if a floor is wet and if you dont know to take care then you could hurt yourself.
Hey “Seolyk”
I know Dante didn’t make them up that’s why I said “made famous” right in the first paragraph. That doesn’t mean he created them.
-Andrew
ah, i actually didn’t notice that paragraph. regardless they weren’t meant to keep people in line through fear.
No problem.
Well it also depends on the individual person as well. Some people might actually be fearful of even being around of the sins or even thinking of them. You can’t know every single person’s personality.
-Andrew
Excellent list! I really enjoyed reading this and I think that if everyone could follow these they would find themselves much happier. And @Don: it takes as much energy to be positive and it does to be negative; try some positivity. I believe in the law of attraction!
Hey,
Worthwhile stuff like this is why the web was created. Great info. Please don’t hesitate to share reciprocal kink with my family and education website,www.alottoaccept.com
Matt
Great list! In order to fulfill your dreams and happiness, you have to be proactive and positive. =)
Hey Donna, glad you liked it so much! And you’re so right with your comment to Don.
Glad you enjoyed it Matt.
And Shevonne, very true! There’s no way to fulfill dreams when you’re negative.
-Andrew
[...] Articolo originale: The New 7 Deadly Sins, di Andrew [...]
hey andrew! How are you?
I agree with the most of stuff you have written but still there are some things i’d like to clear
1st – questioning:
Shouldnt we folow those who are intelect or parents or our prophets without question? And does question means doubt?
2nd – fear:
You said acknowledging is enough, but what if 1 keeps it on even after it? God made heaven and hell to reward or punish, the concept is there! Fear leads to refrain from sin, which leads to peace, justice etc. Isnt it right?
My deadly sin is not waiting to be happy, but waiting to have enough time. I’ve been thinking for years that “once ________ (fill ins specific project du jour) is completed, I’ll have time to relax.
Truth is, there’s ALWAYS a prject on my plate. I lie it that way! But I must build in goof off time NOW! Thanks for the reminder!
Hey Maureen,
Thanks for sharing your deadly sin, a lot of people have the same “sin.”
Work hard and play hard! Relaxation time is an essential key to being productive.
-Andrew
That’s the way. But Raza God has nothing to do with anything. God is just a method of keeping you under control. Full of fears.
Just get as much joy as you can everyday and you will be surprised at the amount of people who will want to know you.
Take good care.Thanks for your article Andrew.
Glad you liked the article!
That’s very true. Get AND spread as much joy as you can everyday and you’ll attract other positive people to you.
-Andrew
Very powerful. Thanks.
Thank you Jannie for reading.
-Andrew
“Saving the world” is overrated and dangerous. I’m sure Hitler and Stalin thought they were saving the world…
Maybe by saving our selves first, we end up “saving” the world??
Changing the world is not overrated or dangerous. Hitler and Stalin wanted to RULE the world, it’s a bit different.
-Andrew
Excellent read, short and to the point, i like it!
Was great way to wake up and drink my coffee over.. escpecially when i was just looking up clouds on google images lol.
Anyways, some people can be negative about the responeses they post, but hopefully they get a glimpes of the light and maybe relise how happiness can be achieved without the possessions of materials and wealth, sometimes we forget just how easy it really is to put a smile on our face.
Good work dude!
Thanks Adam! I’m glad you enjoyed this and understood my good intentions when writing this.
Appreciate you stopping by, reading, and commenting.
Catch ya later,
-Andrew