Promises

We should keep our promises because doing so builds trust. Trust is the currency of business. Trust is the glue in building relationships.

This doesn’t mean that we should expect others to keep their promises. Everyone has to break a promise at some point. Some do it more often than others. Others are downright malicious about it.

If we are honest with ourselves, we understand where these people come from. Bad weather kept their plane on the ground. A relative got sick. They lost a big contract the week before. They grew up on the bad side of town. They were abused as kids. They’ve always hit glass ceilings because of their race, gender, nationality, etc.

When someone breaks a promise they’ve made to us, we should allow ourselves to be frustrated only for a brief moment. Then we need to deploy some empathy and move on.

When we don’t expect others to keep their promises, we walk through life with greater awareness, a lighter heart, and greater speed.