How to Deal With People Who Don’t Do What They Say
Make clear agreements, hold them to their word, and use straight talk.
Broken promises, even small ones, cause problems. Things don’t get done, relationships break down, and trust erodes. And if you’re on the receiving end, you have a choice: Say nothing and let it slide, or call it out, hope it goes well, but risk an argument nobody wants. Either way, it’s stressful.
But it doesn’t have to be stressful when you learn to ask for what you want, elicit clear commitments, and hold people to account based on their word.
Here’s how it works.
Five frogs are on a log. Four decide to jump off. How many remain? Answer: Five. Just because they decide to jump doesn’t mean they’ll make the leap.
The same applies to us. People say they will do something, not realizing their word is their bond, and don’t follow through. This happens in the corporate world all the time. It also occurs in the living room, the kitchen, and the bedroom. And when it does, trust erodes, relationships fracture, and it’s not because someone lied. It’s because someone didn’t behave with integrity.
Integrity is a moral principle based on honesty and truthfulness of one’s actions. Doing what you say will do demonstrates…
