How to Avoid Trying And Being Committed

A chicken and a pig were looking in through the dining room window at a family having ham and eggs for breakfast. “Doesn’t it make you feel good to know that you can make a contribution to the happiness and well being of a family like that?” the chicken asked. The pig replied, “For you it is a contribution, but for me it is total commitment.”

This fable brings out two kinds of people – one who are committed to the cause and accountable for the outcome, and others, who can make a contribution as outsiders. What kind of person are you? Do you sacrifice other opportunities for the sake of a cause you take up? If so, you are an invaluable asset to any team or company and your boss knows it. And if you are the other, you are precious too, but your seniors know they can replace you with many such others. It is always better therefore if you can be committed instead of trying to be so.

How to Drive Commitment

The thin line between being committed and trying to be so is difficult to cross. But once you are able to cross this threshold, you can experience a complete change in attitude towards tasks at hand. Here are some suggestions that might help you to overcome this threshold:

Develop interest, enthusiasm and passion: Apathy must go. Bill Gates has said, “What I do finest is share interest. Interest increases a person’s accomplishments though apathy increases alibis.”

Build on your strengths: Evaluate your strengths before making a commitment. That way you avoid over commitment. Also, as you struggle to fulfill your commitments you grow stronger and discover qualities you never knew you had.

Develop creative solutions: Explore new ways to do things. This helps maintain your interest and you enjoy whatever you do and stay committed.

Develop flexibility: ‘Stay committed to your decisions, but stay flexible in your approach’ said American novelist Tom Robbins. Long term commitments which usually involve other people and situations require you to be flexible. Every individual is different and unexpected situations could crop up anytime. You will never be able to remain committed if you refuse to accept change and differences.

Commitments disintegrate because of miscommunication, laziness and refusal to accept change. You can never be committed unless you take concrete action to keep working on yourself every day.