Someone’s going to inherit your habits, your mess and your kindness. Leave them more of the last one.

LEADERSHIP

WHAT THIS MEANS

Younger people copy what you do without asking permission or announcing it. A sibling, a cousin, the new kid on your team is quietly picking up your tone, your temper and the way you handle being wrong. You do not get to choose whether something passes on, only which parts of you are strongest. Most of that transfer happens on ordinary days rather than in advice.

Pick the habit of yours you would least like to see repeated and leave it alone for a week. Then do a kind thing you rarely do where somebody younger can see it. They take what you practise, not what you recommend.

A QUESTION TO SIT WITH

Would someone inherit more of your mess or more of your kindness?

Free, with nothing to buy inside it.