Letting your actions speak

"As I grow older, I pay less attention to what men say. I just watch what they do."Andrew Carnegie

This quote bothers me.

I'm fine with the sentiment when I see hypocrisy in others, but I don't want it to apply to me. I want my intentions to count for something.

I mean well. I like talking about issues. I enjoy taking a 10,000 foot view and brainstorming ways to solve problems. I specialize in generating ideas.

Doesn't that count?

But for all of my dreaming and discussing, I realize what I say matters much less than what I actually do.

And there's the rub.

I can say the world needs to be more generous, but do I practice generosity? Do I bring thoughtfulness to a conversation, or do I jump into a contentious Facebook thread? I may speak of love, but do I put others first (even when I'm driving)? I like the idea of conservation, but my closets indicate I probably consume more than my fair share.

When I look closely at my life, I see hypocrisy lurking in the dark corners of my behavior. It's the behavior where I live in my comfort zone; where I settle for inaction when boldness is required, or I opt for combativeness when calm is a better choice.

If the audio coming out of my life were muted, what message would I be sending the world?

What would you be saying?