Stop Making Excuses!
Shortly after I got my first driver’s license, I also got my first ticket. I was driving 15 miles over the posted 25 miles per hour speed limit, and a motorcycle cop caught me red-handed. I was upset about the ticket. But mostly, I was upset about telling my dad. My driving perfection lasted all of two months. I was afraid that my dad would be angry with me for being such a lousy bad driver.
So, I spent a couple of days concocting a long list of “reasons” why I got a speeding ticket. I was late for an appointment (true). I was going downhill (true). I was in some traffic and paying attention to the road rather than the speedometer (true). Finally, I faced my fears and told my dad what happened. Yes, I got a ticket. But I was late, and the road went downhill, and there was traffic, and so on. My point? It really wasn’t my fault. I was just the helpless victim of bad circumstances.
As I rambled on with my excuses, my dad listened for a while. Finally, he interrupted me, “Stop!” “Stop what?” I asked. “Stop making excuses!” I stood there in fearful silence for a moment before he continued. “Why don’t you just say you blew it? Why not just admit you made a mistake?”
Although I don’t think I would have scored any points with my dad, I might have answered, “Because that’s what I’m wired to do! Avoiding responsibility is the oldest trick in the book. It’s built into my moral and spiritual DNA.”
