Most people when asked this question would say, “Of course I am!” We like to think of ourselves this way and, in most situations, perhaps we are. Here are two questions to ask yourself:
When I tell someone I’ll do something, do I do it? Do I follow-through?
It’s not uncommon for people to commit to a project and then let it go part way through. If we do this, we’re telling people they can’t trust us when we say we’ll do something. The cure to this is: don’t promise something you can’t deliver. If circumstances change and you won’t be able to follow-through, don’t drop the ball. Let people know things have changed and what they can expect from you. Then you are still trustworthy.
Krysta Gibson is an author, consultant, workshop leader, and publisher of New Spirit Journal.
Do I over promise and under deliver?
Sometimes we get excited about something and tell people we are able to do something that is beyond our abilities. Do I exaggerate my skills and abilities to myself and/or to others? It is much better to under-promise and then surprise people by over-delivering.
And just as it is important to be trustworthy with other people, it is vitally important to be able to trust ourselves.
Don’t mislead or let yourself down by setting goals and projects you know you won’t be able to do. It’s important to look at ourselves and our lives realistically and then stretch a little beyond that. Tell yourself the truth about your life and it will be much easier to move forward from there.
I’m not sure who originally said this, but it does hold true about moving at our own pace:
Mile by mile, life’s a trial.
Yard by yard, life is hard.
But inch by inch, life’s a cinch!
