Guilt Ridden

Are you so full of guilt that you constantly obsess and "beat yourself up?" A bad deed does not make you forever a bad person. You have free will. You can change. You can be a better person than you were yesterday. Use this new day to forgive yourself and to right wrongs to the best of your ability. Actions do speak louder than words, so make your apologies and then show yourself and the world that you hold yourself to a higher standard of behavior than you did in the past.


The finding: People who are prone to guilt tend to work harder and perform better than people who are not guilt-prone, and are perceived to be more capable leaders.

The research: Francis Flynn gave a standard psychological test, which measured the tendency to feel guilt, to about 150 workers in the finance department of a Fortune 500 firm and then compared their test results with their performance reviews. People who were more prone to guilt, he found, received higher performance ratings from their bosses. Related studies showed that they also were more committed to their organizations and were seen as stronger leaders by their peers.