Keep your promises, or don’t promise

Keep your promises, or don’t promise

“There is no greater a fraud than a broken promise.”

True leaders are those who keep their promises. They take their responsibilities to others seriously, and, when necessary, they put aside their own needs for the good of the nation, society or organization. True Leaders are the ones willing to give up something of their own for us—their time, their energy, their money, for common good.

Do you think before you make a promise to someone? What if you can’t deliver on your word? Does it really matter? The world isn’t going to come to an end, is it? Well, actually no, but have you considered. Many people are pretty casual about making promises. As a result, promises are frequently made at the drop of a hat with no real intention of keeping them. “Let’s go for lunch,” “I’ll call you later,” and “I’ll be there in five minutes” are all examples of throwaway promises that are frequently made but seldom kept. However, this casual attitude can have real consequences. This is perhaps the greatest difference between true leaders and pretenders.

When you break a promise, no matter how small it may seem to you, it affects your dependability and reputation. This in turn affect the trust others have on you and your word. Those who have this habit of making false promises also need to think the reverse side of it. When someone else breaks a promise to you, or gets caught in a lie, doesn’t that make you feel violated or cheated?  You can’t help wondering whether you were wrong to ever placing your trust on that person.

Remember, trust is built through a series of experiences shared with others. When behaviour is consistent, faith in the relationship develops. When promises are broken or people are misled, the bonds of trust are breached. Broken promises imply that the offenders either didn’t think before making the promises, or don’t care that they’ve let you down. They’re also implying that their needs are more important than yours. So, be careful about the promises that you make and with whom you make them.

Equally important is the concept of keeping half a promise. This is a method used by those who intentionally are trying to mislead someone with just a bit of the promised whole, really available. It is like promising someone to take them to the moon and instead taking them to a mountain top, pointing out that he is now just that bit closer to the moon than before.  This is a method perfected by politicians’ world over. ‘The new highway promised has now been surveyed, and will be built shortly’, is a common statement of a Government that promised a highway to the people before the previous election. This method fools the people into believing that the promises is in the process of being fulfilled.

There was a time when keeping your word held special significance. We took great pride in being of good character. Personal integrity was both expected and valued and we wouldn’t do a thing that would tarnish our name. It was a time when integrity was instilled in children at a very early age and was viewed as instrumental in achieving success. The truth is, our world may have changed, but the importance of integrity has not.

Every time you give your word, you’re putting your honour on the line. You’re implying that others can place their trust in you because you value integrity and would never let them down. It goes without saying that if you don’t live up to your word, you may end up tarnishing your credibility, damaging your relationships, and defaming your reputation.

In reality, you’ll be letting yourself down.