I was driving to work this morning, and saw a young turtle walking steadily across a busy road.  I avoided him of course, and quickly turned the car around, stopped traffic and saved him (maybe it’s a her – how do you tell?).  I’m a hero, yay!

People are impressionable.  Every day we see things, notice things, observe the actions of others and take mental photographs or notes on what happens around us. Some of it is immediately processed, some of it takes time and is quietly digested into our unconscious minds.  You watch a stranger sip a cup of coffee in an odd manner, and it sticks with you.  Someone treats another employee in a way that ruffles your moral compass, and you begin to look at both in a different light.

Manners are a funny thing. Often times, we have better manners when we’re out in the public eye than we have at home, even though we love our families more than perfect strangers.  We know what good manners are and how people should act, but we don’t get upset at ourselves when we don’t demonstrate those values.  They’re important in all aspects of your life – work, home, family, sports, leisure, etc. I see the most important piece as a simple formula of the golden rule – treat others as you’d want to be treated.