On rare occasion, someone will stop me in the hallway on a Sunday morning or send me an email outlining an issue that offended them.
Years ago, my knee-jerk reaction was to say a quick, "I'm sorry" and be done with it. The truth is, I was never really done with it. I would spend days wondering how I could have phrased something differently or communicated the issue that offended them more gently.
Things are different now.
I've come to learn that whenever you talk to a crowd of people, someone is going to be offended. Heck, it doesn't even have to be a crowd of people. The fact is, there are way too many personalities in the world to avoid making everyone happy.
For this reason, I've stopped apologizing for things I'm not sorry for. I don't mind clarifying my words or actions, but if I'm not sorry... I'm not going to pretend that I am.
Here's the deal: All of us hate watching people (especially politicians) apologize for things we know they aren't really sorry for. We'd rather them say, "I realize people were offended by my words or actions, but looking back... my motives and heart were in the right place and I stand by what I said or did."
Those words are not arrogant or the result of some charade. They are refreshing and true.
I must give the real author creidt Daivd Nelson
