The C.A.T. Principle – Global Ebook Awards GOLD & SILVER Winner for Best Self-Help Non-Fiction Ebook of 2014 & 2016

Reliability: That “Boring” Stalwart of Character…

It’s been said that there isn’t a road in the world that the Volkswagen Beetle hasn’t rolled its wheels on. From Kathmandu to Timbuktu, from Sao Paulo to Oslo, that funny car with the rear engine became a staple on roads everywhere. And as much as it was loved for its distinctive “beetle-like” look, it was that “boring” stalwart of character: reliability, that drove people to love it.

Reliability, that timeless virtue that so many people find boring, and forego for flash and show, is the one trait that any successful civilization can ill-afford to go without. It’s the back bone of any successful venture, whether business, personal or otherwise. Without reliability, the world ceases to run, and nothing gets done. The plumber doesn’t show to fix a backed-up sewer; the professor doesn’t show to teach a class; the dead-beat ex-husband doesn’t show to pay his child-support. These are just a few examples of what happens when reliability flies out the window, and unreliability stumbles through the door. And make no mistake; no profession or group has a monopoly on reliability, as reliability is more about the person than it is about any particular occupation or status.

Reliability boils down to trust (see To Trust or Not to Trust…). Can we trust people to do what they say they’ll do? Can people trust us to do what we say we’ll do? If not, where does that leave us? What does that say about us? How can we have success in any endeavor, if we’re persistently unreliable? Reliability is the springboard to achievement, and without it, we’ll never accomplish what we set out to do. Want to build a successful business? Forget it, if we’re not always there for our customers and clients. Want to build a successful relationship with our spouse? Forget it, if we’re here today and gone tomorrow, for fickle behavior is the antithesis of reliability.

Unfortunately, not all that’s shiny, sleek and beautiful on the surface is reliable. In fact, one could argue that the degree of reliability is often inversely proportional to the degree of exterior attractiveness.  Why is that we ask? By no means is it a rule, but certainly there are those things and people out there that rely on exterior characteristics more than they rely on inner qualities. It’s the sleek, red, sports car broken down on the side of the road, while the green Beetle cruises by. It’s the tortoise plodding reliably, while the hare runs sporadically. The tortoise crosses the finish line; the hare runs out of steam. And even though our ideal may be to drive a sleek, red, sports car (well, maybe not for all of us), fact is, sleek, red and sports don’t mean a whole lot, when reliability is factored out of the equation.

So whatever it is we’re searching for, we might better put reliability at the forefront. If it’s not there, move on, and let someone else deal with the inevitable headaches down the road, as we cruise by in our green Beetle…

For more, check out The C.A.T. Principle: Change, Action, Trust – Words to Live By, a Global Ebook Awards GOLD Winner for Best Self-Help Non-Fiction Ebook of 2014, available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble. See the latest Amazon reviews here. Now revised and expanded, and a Nominee for the Best Self-Help Non-Fiction Ebook of the 2015 Global Ebook Awards.

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A 2014 Global Ebook Awards GOLD Winner for Best Self-Help Non-Fiction Ebook.

2015 Global Ebook Awards Nominee for Best Self-Help Non-Fiction Ebook