Today's post is a short one, and a gentle reminder about the importance of a sincere apology. It's amazing to me how many times I hear someone begin to apologize and the first few words that come out of their mouth are: "I'm sorry I'm late BUT...." or "I'm sorry YOU don't see things the same way as I do". The apology disappears into a cloud of excuses and blame.
A classy woman lets her apologies be sincere by truly owning up to her mistakes and doesn't try to transfer ownership or back peddle with an excuse! When it comes to things outside of our control such as traffic, I've found they are generally not the issue, rather it's our failure to plan properly and manage our own time effectively. Learn from it and make better choices the next time.
Be completely honest with the other person because people can relate to transparency, none of us are perfect but we must try to learn from our past mistakes and make an effort to do better going forward.
A close friend of mine (who lives about 15 mins away) and I like to meet for lunch about once per month, often at the same central meeting point and because it's so close by, I have sometimes improperly gauged my time and left a few mins too late. Even showing up 4 mins late just bugs me, I don't like to keep people waiting, I value other people's time. Sometimes she does the same and we call each other to give a head's up and we always apologize to one another but I really want to do better to improve that area of my life which will only become more hectic with a new baby. Instead of offering the usual excuses people give (and the real reasons that sometimes hold me up), I just own it. I think the last time we met, it went something like this..."I'm so sorry for being late, I didn't leave myself enough time to get here. I really need to manage my time better."
I've also found by taking that ownership and making a verbal commitment to do better the next time, that I actually follow through and do. There is power and accountability in verbalizing how we wish to become better. It may be something to think about or try the next time you find yourself apologizing.
Thanks for reading and happy Friday!
XO
