ENDLESS EXCUSES

“YEAH, BUT . . .

MY TEENAGE SON is a master of excuses. I talk to him about a problem, and he’s always got a new reason why it’s not his fault.”

The Danger Point

It’s easy to be lulled into a series of never-ending excuses—particularly if the other person doesn’t want to do what you’ve asked and learns that as long as he or she can give you a plausible reason, all bets are off.

“I go to work before my son leaves for school, and he’s constantly late. First he told me that he was late because his alarm broke. The next day the old car we bought him had a problem—or so he says. Then his friend forgot to pick him up. Then he had a head cold and couldn’t hear his new alarm. Then . . .”

The Solution

With “imaginative” people, take ...

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