Bad Behaviour

There is a wide variety of situations around at work at the moment and also at works of loved ones. One thing all these situations seem to have in common is that someone is behaving badly.

I once, when I was very young, stole a half penny sweet from our local shop. I was well below the age of criminal responsibility so in the eyes of the law I couldn't be responsible for what I did. So why then did I feel such a gut wrenching guilt? I never told my Mum or Sister or Dad what I had done but the memory has stayed with me. I think I was less than 5 years old. I have never stolen anything outright since. I may have borrowed and I may have liberated excess but I always ask first.

I have no idea why I had such a strongly defined sense of right and wrong from such an early age. I have no idea why other children don't. I have no idea why children can grow into adults that don't. Why are people so different? Why did I learn this lesson?

Theft is a funny thing and in the work place, it is really, really hard to commit successful theft . Even if you are the boss, eventually it catches up with you. I heard a story about some nurses back in the 70s who liberated things from the hospital in which they worked. All sorts of things, linen, cutlery, crockery, toiletries... anything and everything. One day they threw a party and forgot about the source of much of what they had....

Many of the situations revolve around words and bad feeling. Isn't this somehow a sort of theft to? Theft of team spirit? Theft of the right to have a nice day at work?