We all get approached with multiple offers almost every day. It takes time to do adequate due diligence, but a quick way to save a lot of time is by looking carefully at the values and ethics of the messenger.
- Is the messenger honest, and does she keep her word, or radically change her mind within two days?
- Is the message from a liar a lie?
The Messenger’s Integrity Reveals the Truth
The integrity and truth of the message should be measured by observing the messenger. Is a great message sometimes delivered in a damaged and faulty vehicle? Certainly, but it’s uncommon. Generally, I save time and energy by judging the viability of the message by the life of the person delivering that message.
When I get a message composed and delivered by “science fictiontologist Ron L. Koresh”, I don’t rush out to check my Kool-Aid supply. When the messenger arrives in a filthy car with overflowing ashtrays, I don’t spend any time reading his message.
Judge it by its source, and look for congruency: is the messenger living the message? Can obese people tell me how to lose weight, or poor people tell me how to get rich? When a teacher lacks integrity in one area of his life, you know all the other areas have been poisoned. There’s no smoke without fire.
Spotting the Genuine Article
We look for people who practice what they preach, notice how they behave under pressure, and judge them by their consistent choices as well as choices that reveal who they really are. I don’t believe the message when the messenger lacks credibility, even though some messages are wonderful, although they are delivered by losers.
My point is…
If you want your message to be accepted, you had better be “a product of the product”.
Look the part and LIVE the part. Be the message. Be a living message, a real life example, a testimony to the message you deliver.
