Good Intentions Aren't Enough

Suppose you intended to pick up your trash every time you made a mess but instead you just left it laying there for someone else to clean up.

Or maybe you intended to show up to work on time and do your job as reliably as possible but instead decided to sleep in and then goofed off with your coworkers when you finally did come to work.

In spite of all the trash blowing around and the unfinished work that keeps piling up, you’d still be a good person, right? 

The trash-filled community and the frustrated employer are solid proof that results matter more than intentions.

The good intentions did not translate into good results.

What if Intentions alone aren’t enough to make the world a better place?

This is worth considering when it comes to laws and public policy. 

Laws that ban people from using a handheld cellphone while driving have not resulted in less crashes from people texting while they drive.

In fact, crashes actually increased because people who are texting now hold their phones below window level so they won’t be spotted by a police officer. 

This takes the driver’s eyes even further off the road and contributes to an even greater level of unsafe driving.

This doesn’t mean that good intentions are a waste of time. 

It means that in matters of personal character or public policy, our good intentions are not nearly as important as the kinds of results we produce.

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