When thrown by a horse, get back on. (Click image for video)

We need to be trustworthy. 

Not be a wolf’s dinner. 

If we keep giving a shaded view of something that happened, people will learn to discount, and eventually ignore, what we say. Especially if we cast ourselves in the starring role.

Remember the hapless boy who cried wolf when there wasn’t one in sight? In time, the villagers learned not to believe him. He was left to fend for himself (and we know how well that turned out) when a wolf actually turned up. The villagers came to ignore his cries of “WOLF!” because experience told them that the boy saw telling the truth as unimportant.

He wasn’t trustworthy.

He wasn’t believable.

In the same way, if we keep skewing our reporting while others know the reality, it’s only a matter of time until people listen to us with a healthy dose of skepticism. How can they trust us when we seem incapable of reporting an event honestly and relating it properly?

Others may deem us to be a nice person, but discountable at the same time. Is this how we want others to perceive us?

“Why should I re-read a Buddhist book when I know what happens?” (Click image for video)

When we stop fussing about things, 

they go much more smoothly! 

It’s exhausting! All that time and energy we expend on fussing about the daily annoyances we encounter. It’s just too much and all a big waste. We know this. And yet here we are, still grumbling.

Why do I keep having to fix his mistakes?

Won’t she ever learn?

Do they think their time is more valuable than mine?

It becomes a contest between which is more tiring. Fixing the mess? Or fussing about it?

Upon consideration, it’s really not much of a contest. Fussing wins, hands down. But it doesn’t accomplish anything. Point 1: We can whinge all we want, but we still have to fix what the other person messed up. Oops! Let’s make that “We still need to fix what the person needs help with.” Point 2: That correcting will take longer because when we’re fussing, we’re not doing the task. Just wasting time and energy.

We should just tell ourselves that in the past we must have driven a co-worker crazy. If we see it as retribution, our now focused mind can calmly complete the work.