Hello there!  We hope that you are enjoying your Thanksgiving holiday weekend and that you are not too stuffed to read a little today.

This day we would like to bring you an editorial written by one of our esteemed team members, Donna J. Jodhan.

Donna presents a weekly feature on answers to consumers questions.  She is a special needs business consultant, prolific blogger, and author.

Here now is her editorial.

Have a great day. 

Your business team

 

When you hear the word commitment

 

So, here is my big question of the day.  When you hear the word commitment, what does it mean?  Does it mean that you have made a promise to do what you say you are going to do?  Or does it mean that you will only do what you feel like doing?  Or does it mean that you are only going to do half or less of what you promised to do?

 

There was a time when most of us took commitment seriously.  We did exactly what we promised to do and even went a bit further.  Some times, I notice that some of us still adhere to the sacred word but there are so many who simply do not.  They do not take commitment seriously and I get the impression that their version of the word commitment is that they will do whatever they feel like doing and the hell with the rest.  A few months ago I had the unpleasant experience of interacting with a young man who definitely did not understand the meaning of the word commitment.  He committed to producing a monthly newsletter for one of our clients but when he realized that it would entail having to work within a team, and working with persons from diverse backgrounds, he simply walked out saying:  "I don't have time to mingle with those of you who don't know what you're doing."

 

Clearly, this person missed the boat.  True it is he made the commitment to produce the monthly newsletter, but his version of commitment was vastly different from mine.  It appears to me that his version of the word commitment meant that he would do whatever he felt like doing and if something did not please him, then he would simply walk out.  Very sad!

 

Commitment seems to be on the decline these days.  From governments to companies and individuals, the general impression is that commitment seems to be quickly slipping away and being replaced with non commitment.  It's probably why so many marriages continue to end in divorce; because couples are not willing to carry through with their commitment.  It's probably why so many governments continue to find themselves  in hot water with each other and with their own people; because they continue to break their commitments.  It's probably why so many companies continue to find themselves losing customers and revenue; because they continue to ignore the commitments that they have made to their customers.  It's probably why so many recent graduates continue to find themselves being frustrated at not being able to find suitable employment; because they are unable to keep their commitment to show that they can stick when the going gets tough.

 

Unfortunately, the experience that I described above is very common these days.  We are constantly seeing instances of persons who commit to specific responsibilities and tasks but fail to complete them and you know what?  The excuses that they offer for not fulfilling their commitment are becoming more and more ridiculous.  In the case of this young man that I referred to above, he could not really come up with a real reason as to why he walked out.  Why he broke his commitment.  First he had the boldness to say that he did not want to mingle with people who did not know what they were doing.  Then he said that he did not want to meet us face to face for meetings.  Then he said that he did not want to work with anyone who was not committed.  Figure it out for yourself.

 

Here is my take on this subject.  I believe that when most of us make a commitment, we do it with the best of intensions but for some reason, whenever we run into difficulty, whenever we are faced with unexpected challenges, whenever the going gets tough, we simply forget our commitments and walk away because it's the easiest thing to do. Time for us to revisit and relearn the meaning of the word commitment.