Why It’s So Hard to Always Practice What You Preach
I try hard to practice what I preach. However, it’s not always so easy. The extreme of failing to practice what you preach is being a hypocrite. I’m no hypocrite, but I’m no saint either. Maybe somewhere in between.
I’m writing about this topic because I caught myself yelling at my younger son earlier today. I know that yelling is useless. I wrote about why it’s a parenting mistake and why yelling doesn’t motivate behavior change within the last 6 months. However, in the moment my knowledge on this topic didn’t prevent me from violating what I know is right.
The reality is that old habits die hard, but the will to kill that habit is stronger when you recognize its detrimental effects. This recognition is what saved me from going too far today.
Within moments after yelling at my son for something minor, his entire demeanor changed. As the situation unfolded, I saw how my yelling wasn’t motivating him and was causing me more time than it would have originally taken if I just left him alone.
Ultimately, I was able to look within and rectify my mistake. Normally, I would have just kept yelling more and more when I didn’t get the behavior I wanted. Instead of that, this time I just talked quietly explaining the “why” behind my sense of urgency. Taking time to explain my “why” is what did the trick this time.
So I may not have started by practicing what I preach, but I did eventually get there. It’s hard to always practice what you preach because always being perfect is an impossible goal. A better goal is to move the needle towards perfect as much as you can each chance you get.