Thomas Hobbes: The importance of keeping your word
Thomas Hobbes believed that only a Fool would be willing to break his word to suit his own self-interest.
Here’s his philosophy on the importance of being a man of your word, and how weak words lead to societal decay:
Thomas Hobbes’ father, a vicar, abandoned Hobbes after disgracing himself by getting into a brawl at the door of his own church, leaving Hobbes in the care of his uncle.
His uncle supported his education, allowing him to study at Oxford University, where he took to classical literature, and later travelled around Europe, exposing himself to leading thinkers at the time, like Galileo & Descartes.
Most renowned for his social contract theory, Hobbes argues that human nature is driven by self-interest and lives in a “war of all against all,” where life is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.”
To escape this, individuals must collectively agree to surrender some of their freedoms to a sovereign authority in order to ensure peace and security.
In other words, there must be rules that we all follow.
One of these rules Hobbes saw to be essential to the well-being of society, is being a man of your word.
Staying true to your word is the cornerstone of a stable society.
Trust is built on promises kept. When people can rely on each other, they can work together.
Allowing for a civilisation that is strong and prosperous.
A reputation for honesty and reliability brings opportunities, people will want to work with you knowing they can trust you.
In a society where promises are kept, there is less fear and more stability, people can focus on living rather than merely surviving.
When you say you will be somewhere at a certain time, be there at that time.
When you say you will do something for someone, do that thing for that someone.
An individual who sticks to his word, shows that he has integrity, discipline, respect for others, and a level of honesty that is rare in this day and age.
The Fool thinks it is smart to break promises if it suits his own best interests.
He thinks only of short-term gain.
Hobbes sees further. He knows that breaking promises hurts everyone in the end, even the Fool.
When people break their word, the foundation of society cracks and chaos creeps in.
Laws become meaningless if no one believes in keeping their agreements, weakening the underlying structure of civilisation.
Trust is hard to build and easy to destroy.
In the end, breaking your word costs more than it could ever gain.
Trust, reputation, social order, and self-respect are all at stake.
As the philosopher and jurist Jeremy Bentham says, “The rarest of all human qualities is consistency.”
Emotions, moods, and circumstances fluctuate.
Social pressures, changing environments, and unforeseen challenges further complicate your ability to stay consistent.
That is why Bentham labels consistency as the most rare of all human qualities.
Yet there is nothing special in keeping your word once, it is through consistency that you build a reputation of trust and reliability.
Both Hobbes and Bentham urge you to strive for steadiness and reliability in your actions and principles. Anything else signals that you lack discipline.
