- I believe that a person's willingness to commit to something says something about them.
- I believe that what a person chooses to commit themselves to, says something about them.
- I believe that the degree to which a person fulfills their commitments says something about them.
At the end of the day, does this mean that I'm judging people based on their commitment to to things? Yes. Am I proud of that? No - but it's the truth. I also think that there are worse things that I could judge people for, so I don't feel too badly about this.
So... having said all that... here's what that means to me:
- When I find myself saying "we'll see" or "maybe" - that's me avoiding commitment. I need to get better at recognizing this for what it is. Is it that I want to say no? If so, I need to just say it, and explain why. Is it that I want to say yes but I'm just feeling lazy or am daunted by the idea of committing to it? If so, I need to be real with myself and my feelings, and just man up and commit to it if that's the right thing to do.
- I need to take stock at what I have committed myself to. Are there things that I've done for awhile, because they seemed like a good idea at the time, but that's no longer the case? Am I committing myself to things that are helping me to achieve my goals, or things that are preventing me from achieving them? Have I avoided committing to something that is worthy of my time and attention, but I haven't been able or willing to take them on due to other demands on my time? Time to re-evaluate and have some honest conversations.
- I always make every effort to follow through on my commitments. If I say that I'll do something, you can believe that I will do it. If I say that I'll stop by a store to pick something up while I'm out, I'll do it. If I think that there's a chance that the store may be closed when I'm done whatever I'm doing, I'll plan ahead and stop there first. This is because I wouldn't want to risk not following through with a commitment I've made. There are rare occasions when unavoidable things get in our way, and prevent us from following through with commitments we've made. It's what we do when this happens that says something about a person. That's what I mean when I say the degree to which a person fulfills their commitment.
When an obstacle presents itself, do you use it as an excuse to not keep your word? A way to explain and provide "reasons" why you didn't follow through as you said you would? Or do you push past it, get creative, and exhaust every possible alternative to help you to reach your goal? If the store is closed, do you drive around to other stores? How many? How much time and effort are you willing to put into keeping a commitment?
What is it worth, to be a person who can be counted on? A person whose word can be trusted? To me, it's worth everything. So...when I make a commitment, you can be sure that I will do everything I can to meet it. If I say I'll do something, I'll do it. If I say I'll be somewhere, I'll be there. When I see others not meeting their commitments, right or wrong, I am making an assessment of their values. I'm determining the degree to which I can trust them.
Commitments come in all shapes and sizes. It's each time you say you'll do something, and each time you say that you won't do something. It's each promise you make, and each casual agreement you make. It's the forever stuff, and it's the next week stuff. It's not rocket science... it's just following through; keeping your word; doing what you said you'd do.
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