Are you marketing a version of yourself that doesn't exist?

Let's end this week by going one level deeper.

We all have our principles. But having principles isn't what counts. Living them is.

A principle in name is just marketing. And nothing loses trust faster than empty marketing that doesn’t deliver what it promises. Having principles might feel good but it’s only by living principles that you do good.

Put any of your principles through this test:

1. Do you live it daily?
2. Do you live it when you’re tempted not to?
3. Do you live it when others around you don't?

If you pass all three, you're living the principle. If not, you're marketing a version of yourself that doesn’t exist. Even if you’re only marketing to yourself.

Where does self-awareness come in?

Any principle you claim but don't live creates friction in your life and relationships. That gap between claiming and living is where dysfunction hides, breeds, and curls its tangled web of roots.

When you notice a gap between claiming a principle and living it, you have two choices: live it or let it go. Live it daily. Live it when you’re tempted not to. Live it when others around you don’t.

Holding principles you don't live is worse than not having them at all. It creates internal misalignment and external confusion.

Use the wedge of curiosity. Get honest about what you believe, what you claim, and what you live.

Event + Response = Outcome. Do the work.