I’ve discovered that the older I get the more I accept and operate on the basis that I really don’t have all the answers. (Yes, I know… surprise, surprise.) That contrary to my best intentions, I may be ‘wrong’. Perhaps not for me, but I could be for you. I do have standards by which I, hopefully, base (and judge) my actions and words, but my standards may not be yours. While we can discuss the differences and refine one another and agree to disagree, the point really is – are you living according to the standards you set for yourself. Do you? Are you?
It isn’t always easy and you don’t always operate on your own standards… no matter how much you want to. And when we discover this, do we typically search for a reason – actually an excuse for not adhering to our own philosophical foundation? Absolutely! There are small slips and there are the more significant ones. A new question is… are you revising your own beliefs? Do your ‘slips’ reflect an emerging change in a standard?
Though I titled this in the singular, it is a plural word. Depending on the topic/subject you may be surprised that you can’t simply put a ‘tag’ of conservative, liberal, altruistic, self-serving, etc. as your overall standard. It does depend. Granted there is an overriding tag that you can use as a kind of primary approach/philosophy but even so… it does depend. Each component in our library of standards is displayed as an individual ‘volume’. Our responsibility is to respond according to our standard when that ‘issue’ arises.
In the final analysis the important point is: do you know what your Standards are? Do you have, based on your experience, as full an understanding as possible about who you are and what you believe and how you respond? Do you know those beliefs that you would never compromise? Some areas of our lives are still in the formative stage. Bottom line: do you see yourself as a person of integrity? Your integrity is critical to your standards. But never forget that your standards are yours and you can’t impose them on others.
… but what do you think?
