Obligations, Promises and Integrity: Food for the Soul

Our lives are full of all sorts of obligations including work, promises made to friends and family, and even obligations based on spiritual beliefs and personal integrity. All of those demands and pressures can weigh you down and cause you to feel like life would just be a whole lot better if you didn't have any obligations at all!

Broken promises erode the trust between people as well as the credibility of the individual or organization that made and failed to carry through with the promise. If you fail to carry through with your obligations and break promises you have made, people will have no choice but to withdraw some or all of the trust they placed in you and they are more likely to turn to someone else in the future. This is the same in business as it is in personal relationships, although in business there's often no opportunity to redeem yourself.

It's easy to see what you stand to lose by breaking promises and reneging on obligations, but do you realize all that you stand to gain by fulfilling them? Of course there is the benefit of building even more trust and credibility, but there is an even greater reward. When you fulfill your obligations and promises, it builds your confidence, self esteem, self-respect and sense of integrity--providing you with a surge of positive energy that is fuel for your spirit! You will also have less need for validation from external sources in order to feel good and worthy.

While it is true that you can't break promises if you avoid making any in the first place, this mindset does not help you achieve the deep sense of purpose and value that your spirit requires for living. Life without obligations might sound easier but in reality it's much more difficult because you have no direction or purpose. If you're finding it difficult to meet your obligations and fulfill your promises, try focusing on the benefits you'll receive, especially the ability to feel even better about yourself.

~*~Monica Who~*~