The keynote presentation was over when a younger man walks up to me and shares his insights on how meaningful my presentation was to him. “Your message was so timely! Yesterday I got a call from my son’s school letting me know that Andy (his son’s name) was coming home with a note. He got in trouble for stealing another kids pencil.”
Now as he was sharing this with me I was thinking about what action this dad might have taken to provide a teaching lesson for his son. Every choice has a consequence, so I was interested in hearing what consequence the kid might have experienced – a teaching moment – so to speak – so that he wouldn’t make the same choice again. What I heard next however told it all.
“Can you believe that…in the fourth grade and already getting in trouble. I told him, if you needed a pencil I could bring one from work. Don’t steal from your buddy.”
What did he say?
I didn’t write this wrong or hear it wrong. This dad scolded his child for stealing a pencil, yet told him that he’d (the dad) would steal one from work if he needed one.
There’s a good chance that what you see in your children – in their behavior – is something they learned from you. If you want your children to act ethically then demonstrate that to them every day. Likewise, if you want your employees to act ethically, demonstrate that to them every day. The behavior you want someone to exhibit is most likely reflected back to you based on your behavior.
I’d love to say that dad capitalized on this teaching moment. Actually he did…he taught stealing is OK if you don’t get caught. Sad, but all to often, this is the lesson we teach out youth and then we ask why they act as they do.
YOUR COMMENTS ARE WELCOME!
