Walk the talk - self-improvement
Walk the talk - people will respect you
Walk the talk! Do what you say! I have seen many who talk and seem to give a lot of advise but then never follow what they say in their real life. Preaching is easy, practice is hard! I hardly have much respect for such people and I am sure you don’t too. Walking the talk is not as easy as it sounds, but one could stop preaching until they could put into practice at least a bit of what they preach. I teach different groups of people including Bible study groups and one thing that I constantly find myself teaching about is attitude. The Bible stresses so much on the attitude of the heart. Sometimes when I teach on attitude I really have to stop and ask myself, ‘Do you do that?”. This is the hardest part of teaching or preaching. Most of the articles I write are on self-improvement and then again I freely dispense advice to everyone. Often I have to pause and introspect, ask myself if I really put to practice what I so confidently advocate. Walking the talk is easier said than done, it is a life of constant introspection and change. No wonder people run away from it!
Influence people - walk the talk
Oftentimes we influence people more by what we do than what we say. I teach my children not to say lies, but at times tell them to tell an unwanted caller that I am not at home or some such excuse. This often backfires when I point out their mistakes I am told, ‘That is what you did... with so and so’. This puts me on the alert mode. I become so conscious of my actions, especially with regard to values. I have learnt so many things from some mentors that I have had in the past. One of my recent mentors who works so very hard became my inspiration. It is such a wonderful thing to have such inspiring people around you who inspire you with what they do rather than what they say. This is a more lasting way of influencing people than with plain talk. You influence others by walking the talk!
Commitment to what you say helps you walk the talk
Recently as I advocated to a group of women that they should mentor others who needed help they raised a concern, “We are not yet there, how can we mentor others?’
This sounds reasonable enough at the face of it, but what is that ‘there’ place that these women want to get to - is it perfection? Well then it is never going to happen. What I have found from my years of mentoring others is that, you bring your experience to educate the other but you also learn as much from your ward if you have an open mind. What I mean here is that, as much as you as a teacher/mentor have to offer from your experience, your mentee/ protege brings to the table a fresh and new fund of knowledge which could benefit you, in terms of use of latest technology, gadgets, or even later innovations in the field that you have not kept abreast to . But what has this got to do with your topic of walk the talk you may ask - well I am getting there.
Most people shy away from talking / teaching /mentoring as they believe that they are not perfect enough. No one is perfect, but you could become near perfect by passionately advocating what you believe in. The keyword is believe. Your faith or belief is as its strongest when it is alignment with your core values and belief systems. When there is a difference between what you advocate or talk about and what you really believe in you may find yourself in a conflict situation, being pulled in two different directions. A high level of personal integrity is possible only when your talk aligns with your values.
What you often talk about forces you to walk the path that you direct others into. This may not be the case for everyone, but those who are conscientious are often bound by their words. It is while I teach or present something that I have found that deep longing/motivation to truly walk the talk. That brings us to the point that we better not spout out what ever comes to our mind. If we advocate something we need to be passionately about it first. You cannot be passionate about something that you don't believe in. The more you talk about the idea the more passionate you become about that cause, it works both ways. Your passion makes you the person you want to be. I often say, “I am committed to happiness”, when I say that I cannot ever be unhappy. When the biggest dramas happen in my life (I know these emotional drams happen in yours too) and I am so pained, I repeatedly tell myself, 'I am committed to happiness'. It is often my commitment to the idea that helps me walk the talk.
Walk the talk - inspire the world
If we all walked the talk, the world would be full of happy people, less confused people to deal with and more doing people than saying people. Frequently I notice that people do a lot of pushing around with their talk, promise the heavens and the Earth and then don’t deliver. They don’t deliver because they cannot. As a Human resource professional while recruiting people for the organizations I worked in I would always mark an asterisk on the resume of the candidate who promises to do great things. Although many others like their dashing confidence I would always measure such talk against their ability. Their past records would tell me more than I need to know, a couple of reference calls would clear my doubts. I have had a high degree of success because I made it a point to recruit those who walked the talk.
A long time a go I read an comic strip that said (I am not quoting here... but saying it form memory) ‘you can bullshit your way to the top but cannot bullshit your stay up there, the weight of it would bring you down’... or something to that effect. If we speak for the sole purpose of creating an impression, an impression is all you might make, a good one or a bad one depends on how you back up your talk with your walk.
Politically correct statements do not mean much either. They may keep you out of trouble but do not really hold much weight to what you say. These statements any lack commitment and people are interested in knowing if you mean the things you say.
Walk the talk and you would inspire and influence people around you, but most importantly you would find your self-confidence and self esteem growing by leaps and bounds. The very fact that you take yourself seriously and are a person of your words make your credible and trustworthy in the eyes of others. You assume responsibility for your life and what you do. You become a person in your own right! You become your own boss! So I say once again - say what you mean, mean what you say, walk the talk and don’t just talk your way through life! Walk the talk and inspire the world around you!
