Get rid of bad habits

Take a good hard look at your life and decide what needs to be changed. Are you drinking too much? Are you flirting with women in the office which could jeopardize your job and marriage? Have you considered morally questionable business deals? Is your work life so out of balance that the family seems to be operating without you? Are you involved in pornography that could lead to some embarrassing incidents? (In our survey 31% of men admitted to having a dark side which they would not want others to know about.)

Do you remember John Edwards? A Vice-Presidential candidate, his story reminds us how easy it is to have a "private self" that is different from the public one we present to everyone else. What makes this particularly sad is that Edwards was taking contributions from people while representing himself as something he was not--a trustworthy, morally upright, and honest person. Worse, he was talking about the need for strong moral convictions for Americans. Now his political career is over and his image is soiled forever.
I know a man who went to prison because of his "private life" that only he and a few others knew about. He can never recover the damage to his family and his career, but he is now coaching others facing prison for similar issues as a way of seeking some redemption.

Many of us can somehow "segment" or compartmentalize our lives and find ways to justify (we think) living one way while proclaiming to be something else. For example, some men are church leaders but are hooked on pornography or are involved in affairs.