I’ve made a number of mistakes in my life, but fortunately, by God’s grace, none of them have ruined my future.
Day by day, there are things that we do or say or write that could influence our future badly.
Quote from Ralph Marston
I read a report over the weekend of how many people were arrested on Friday night for drunk driving. That arrest will stay on the record of those found guilty for 5 years from the time of the court case. In South Africa, it may take 5 years to get to the guilty verdict. Think about that for a moment. If the person is 23 when he/she foolishly drinks and drives and gets caught, they may be 28 by the time their court case rolls around. They will be 33 by the time that mis-demeanour is off their record. If they want to go overseas to work, they will have to get police clearance. No international employer will accept them while they’ve got that strike against them and in this instance it will take 10 years for it to be removed.
It’s worth thinking about.
The other thing I’ve seen recently which made me cringe and squirm was what someone wrote on Facebook. Don’t badmouth your employer on social media – EVER, even if your employer is in the wrong. The damage is multi-layered. The employer who is criticized publicly will never re-employ the critic. A different employer who interviews the critic may quite possibly go onto Facebook and look at their profile to see what kind of person they are. What they have written, what music they listen to, what groups they spend time on, what language they use. It’s all there for others to see and be influenced by. If a potential employer sees someone criticizing a previous employer, they will reason the employee may treat them the same way.
You are what you write. You are what you say.
Don’t be combative or aggressive.
If you really want to influence your future, here’s some wise advice
Ephesians 4:29
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
- Watch what you do today.
- Watch what you say today.
- Watch what you write today.
People are watching you. They are listening. They are reading.
Good advice for me.
These are the days.
Keep the smile going.
God bless you!
In His Grip,
Helga xx 🙂