Adults and The Golden Rule

Adults and the Golden Rule We tell children about the Golden Rule, but sometimes forget about it for ourselves

The Golden Rule

“Do unto others as you would have them do unto you” really is a golden rule if followed. We tell children to treat other people just the way we want them to treat us. Sounds simple enough, but how well do we follow our own advice?

Consider your own behavior at work, social functions, or when requesting something at home from a family member.

At Work

I recently received an e-mail from a coworker. The e-mail gave a directive and in bold print at the bottom said to complete the task that day and e-mail her when it was completed. The writer of the e-mail was not my boss and there were about twenty people receiving the note. Although not the content of the e-mail, the message I received from her was one of self-importance.

Examples such as this one are all too common. The writer of that e-mail was probably so focused on the task at hand that she didn’t even consider that her note might be offensive. She has children and is probably accustomed to giving orders and requiring an immediate response.

Lesson to learn: Be sure to listen to what you say and write as though you were the recipient of the message.

Social Functions

Here is your place to shine! Look around the room for those people who look alone or uncomfortable to hold conversations with. You can meet new people and help them feel more at ease with the gathering as well. It is easy to stick with our known groups of friends, but for just a moment consider the other guy. It is not easy to attend a function where you don’t know very many people, but sometimes we find ourselves in that situation.

Lesson to learn: You have to be a friend to have a friend.

At home

We get so comfortable with family members that we sometimes take them for granted. It seems like they should know what to do all of the time, and we get frustrated when they don’t. Sometimes rude things are said to family members that we would never say to a stranger. Courtesies, kind words, and compliments go far in smoothing relationships with those closest to us.

Lesson to learn: Those closest to us should be treated with the most kindness.

Adaptation

An old adaptation of the adult Golden Rule is “The guy with the gold rules.” There is a degree of truth to this adaptation, but what is lost is the value of people. Maybe the saying is more of a corruption of the Golden Rule than an adaptation. Just like other bitter sayings, it has been around for a long time and won’t go away soon. Angry tones bring to fruition another old saying by Ella Wheeler Cox, “Laugh and the world laughs with you, weep and you weep alone.”

Lesson to learn: Robert Frost’s road less traveled still makes all the difference.