“Dependability isn’t a judgement; it’s arithmetic,” so said The Grasshopper.

Imagine this conversation:

“Oh, he’s so unreliable, he just can’t be depended on.”

“Don’t be so judgmental. Remember the time he fixed our toaster?” (Do people still have toasters?)

The question that begs to be asked is: How many times did he come through based on the number of times he said he would deliver? That’s fact-based arithmetic. A statement, lacking this arithmetic, is an unfounded judgement.

One of the five signs I’ve noticed about immaturity is the lack of dependability.

You can calculate your own dependability – thus maturity; The math is very simple. How many times do you follow through on the things you say you will do?

If the first thing you noticed were the excuses you would offer for why you didn’t follow through, that does not add up to dependability.

If you find that your score is rather low on the dependability scale, the first step is to promise less. Channeling Dr. Phil, “Close your pie hole!”

Your rate of dependability immediately goes up when your amount of promises goes down. Stop telling people what you think they want to hear and stop advertising yourself as more than you are. Less is more when it comes to dependability. Use your own adding machine, not mine. Who do you consider more of an “adult” – a person who over-promises and under-delivers or a person who under-promises and over-delivers? It’s not even close.

Before you judge yourself as dependable or not, do the arithmetic. The higher your score, the higher people will hold you in their esteem.

Here’s the bumper sticker: To score higher, stop being a liar.

All the best,

John