This statement was one, I heard all the time, as I was growing up. I was taught that your word is your bond. This statement meant to always honor your word. My Grandfather would always tell me this. Now that I'm older and have realized life; I understand what my dear old granddad was trying to instill in me. I'm trying to teach my children the same thing.
Granddad told me if we tell someone something, then we should do whatever it was, that we told the person we, would do. Your word is your bond means exactly that you do what you say. I've strived to treat others the way I wanted to be treated, I have always tried to be honest and tell a person exactly what I meant.
If you tell someone you're going to do something, then honor the promise you made to the person. You don't want to build your life on a mountain of lies. I for one, cannot stand a liar, so don't make me any promises you can't or won't keep. Honesty and truth comes from your ability to honor your word in life.
If you live your life with honesty and humility, people will honor you and respect you, because they know they can trust you and your word; regardless of any other circumstances. If you continue to make constant promises and never keep them, then your word won't be worth anything to anyone.
One of the most important messages I want to give my children is; nobody is perfect, and it’s okay to fail. It’s not okay to not use those life lessons to make it better in the future. Chalk it up to life experience and do better. Be honest about your mistakes, and be honest to those around you.
Try to always live your life where anyone can give you a good recommendation as an honest and trustworthy person. You don't want your life shaded by darkness because of not being able to tell the truth, and live accordingly. My Grandfather is dead and gone, but he made me realize that my word is my bond, it's a true saying that I try and live my life by each and every day.
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ReplyDeleteI recently had the opportunity to talk about this in my Scoutmasters Minute. I pointed out to them the reputation they receive in life is going to stay with them for a long time, and that if their reputation is that they don't keep their word, or that they are untrustworthy, it will hang around for a long time to come. Even if you later change your ways, these things will hang in your shadows for many many years.
ReplyDeleteAlso, your reputation is the one thing you can not buy. It doesn't matter if you're rich or poor, people will know you for how you treat others and how you follow through on your word. It is a barometer of who you really are, and no amount of money is going to change that. By the same token a lack of money won't affect it either. You are the man (or woman) that either does or doesn't hold true to their word.
In our house lying will automatically double any punishment. If you were going to be grounded for a week, and you lied about it, it's now 2 weeks.
I've told the boys there are times I've had to call people in the middle of the night and give them bad news because of something I've done. It's never an easy job, but it's what is right. And in the end the customers are okay with the situation because I was upfront with them.
Sounds like your grandpa was a wise man...now I know where you get it from.
Dennis