Practice what you preach

My daughter had been to a coaching camp for almost 9 months. When she returned we realized she had developed this habit of extensively using her mobile. My husband tried telling her many times the disadvantages of excessive use of the device but in vain. He looked at me and said I think you need to speak to her. So I am the bad cop in the house as always. But before I told her anything the next day over a cup of coffee when my daughter was away I told my husband - can we have a quick chat. He was happy because he thought I had a plan to get our daughter off mobile. He somewhere knew I was to tell a story, well I have always used it to put my point across, & I started. Once there lived a young boy who enjoyed eating sweets. He would have sweets for breakfast, lunch and dinner. All he ate was sweet. This habit was not healthy for him, and his parents knew about his bad habit and wanted him to stop it. His mother often told him that overeating sugar is harmful to his health. However, the young boy did not listen to his mother and continued binge eating sweets since he was hooked on them. Since the young boy did not follow his mother’s instructions, his mother decided to seek assistance from a knowledgeable and respected sage who resided in the next village. Society greatly respected him, and the boy appreciated and idealised him. So she took his son to the location where the Saint was staying, hoping the boy would follow his advice. The trek to see the Saint was long since they had to walk miles in the scorching heat. A long line of people was eager to greet the Saint when they arrived. Finally, after several hours of waiting, the mother and boy met the Saint.?The mother asked the wise Saint to advise and warn her son about the hazards of overeating sweets. “I can’t tell him that just now,” the Saint said. “But please bring him back in a month, and then I will talk to him! ‘Hearing this, the mother was confused and upset that Saint did not give any solution right away. But he was the wise Saint, and if he told us to wait, she reasoned and convinced herself he must have something special up his sleeve to keep her kid from eating too many sweets. Both returned home. They returned to see the Saint after a month. “Young guy, you should quit consuming too many sweets since it is bad for your health,” Saint remarked this time. Listen to and obey your mother.” The boy agreed. The mother was a little annoyed and asked the Saint, “Why didn't you say that to him last time when I got him here? “Mother, last time you visited, I had the habit of consuming a lot of sweets myself,” the Saint grinned. I couldn’t advise him what to do because I hadn’t done it myself. However, I’ve been eating fewer sweets for the past month and have felt considerably better. So now I can tell him to do what I was able to put into action and follow.” My husband got the message and that day onwards his use of mobile phones at home was very limited. We all decide to have dedicated time for digital things and the bond in the family, (touch wood) is beautiful.?

Reflection by Dr. Anjana?

Reflect on life and ask yourself how many times we expect people to not do things which we do? It’s always difficult to practice what we preach. Remember our actions speak louder than words. People are more likely to follow and listen to us when our words and actions are aligned. This holds true even in the corporate world. Leaders who lead by example by possessing integrity, need not demand but can easily command respect & become influential. People may doubt what you say, but they will believe what you do. The Irony of life is we expect people to do as we say and not as we do?so never separate the life one lives from the words we speak.

Let’s go ahead in life & start leading by examples, not by showing samples.

Attract what you expect Reflect what you desire. Become what you respect and Mirror what you admire because just an ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching.