Keep promises to little kids most of all. They’re learning from you whether bigger people can be trusted.

A small promise is small only from your side. For a child it is a test of whether what adults say bears any relation to what happens, and the answer gets filed away and applied to everybody else. Breaking it teaches a general lesson rather than causing a specific disappointment. You are not only letting one person down; you are setting their expectations about people.

Promise less and keep what you promise, especially the tiny things like turning up or bringing something. If you cannot do it, tell them beforehand and say why. Follow through on whatever you said last week, even if they seem to have forgotten.