Vows performed in a wedding, till death do us part. The divorce papers have arrived and nobody’s died. Broken promises
A young child patiently waiting, catcher’s mitt in hand, watching for the father who never arrives. Broken promises.
A boss tells you that the next promotion is yours. Just hang in there, they say. The promotion never comes. Broken promises.
A friend cries when she hears the retelling of her story after your sworn secrecy. Broken promises.
Your Word is Your Bond
Have you ever had someone break a promise to you?
How did it feel? Awful, I’m sure.
Keeping your word has always held special significance. It’s the thing great movies are made of because it’s a mark of good character and high integrity. The world may have changed but the importance of such integrity has not.
Every time you give someone your word, you’re putting your decency on the line. You’re telling others that they can place their trust in you because you would never let them down.
If people don’t trust your word, they won’t trust you.
What about the other way around?
Have you ever broken a promise you made to another person? Or do you take your promises earnestly? Promises are serious oaths and there are strong feelings attached to them when they are made and broken.
When we promise something, we pledge with all of our heart and integrity that our word is bond.
When you carry forward behaviors in this manner, your intentions will be presumed moral. A promise is a promise after all.
But…. What about promises to ourselves?
I’m going to start exercising and lose weight. Broken promises
I’m going to get out of this relationship that is unhealthy for me. Broken promises.
I’m going to take my medicine faithfully when I get out of the hospital. Broken promises.
I’m not going to spend my money frivolously and will save to get out of debt. Broken promises.
Why don’t we take a self-promise as seriously as promising someone else that we’ll do something?
Most self-promises are because we think it’s for our own good. We believe that life will be better with the change.
Self-promises also examine your integrity. Self-promises test your willpower. It’s generally easier to keep promises to others than it is ourselves.
Think for a second.
Are you breaking promises that you’ve made to yourself? Was it important to you? If it wasn’t, you probably wouldn’t have gone through the hassle of attempting to make the promise. That can be damaging to your mind and body. Life can be wonderfully changed the instant we take responsibility for being resolute with our self-promises.
Consider your promise a contract with yourself.
Be just as intent on keeping promises with yourself as you do others. Be clear about the importance of this contract. There are no small promises or big promises, a promise is a promise. If you can’t keep the small ones, you’ll never be able to keep the large ones.
When your behavior is consistent, you’ll build trust in yourself. You’ll be able to rely on yourself for the things you need. Broken promises hint at either not thinking about the significance before making the promises, or not caring that you’re letting yourself down.
Which is it?
If you can’t keep a promise, don’t make it. Consider your promises honored agreements with yourself because taking your word seriously, gives you focus and precision.
Your results will be amazing!
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