80/20 Rule

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“Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”  Colossians 4:6
I teach tennis.  I started three years ago, I’m beginning my fourth year of teaching this year.  Tennis is a great way to learn life lessons.  You call your own lines, it shows your level of honesty.  It requires patience, endurance, perseverance.  It teaches you how to win and how to lose.  Those are just a few.  There is one thing teaching tennis has taught me that has revolutionized my life.
Did you know, 80% of what you say to children they remember?  However, you only remember 20% of what you say to children.  That’s intimidating!  I can’t even remember what I had for lunch yesterday, much less every word that has come out of my mouth.
I have found, the older I get, the less I remember.  I have found there is only one solution to this statistic.  Make sure everything you say is uplifting and encouraging.  Then you don’t have to worry about remembering what you say.
I can’t say I am perfect at this.  I can say, every time I look at the sweet face of a child I remember that rule.  It holds me to a level of accountability that I appreciate.
One of my good friends gave me this piece of advice when I started coaching.  They don’t care about how much you know until they know how much you care.  There is no better way to show them how much you care than with the words that  you use.
Lord, help me be uplifting and encouraging in all I say.  Forgive me the times I fail.
 
 

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