Choose Your Battles

A couple of days ago, I wrote a post on "winning the battles to win the war". While it is true that we have to win the battles to win the war, we must also choose which battles to fight. Not every battle is worthy for us to enter. Some battles we should avoid because they will do more harm than good. This means that some situations we need to learn to avoid. We may think that we should slay a particular dragon and we very well may be successful, but the cost can be great. Some battles are not true battles. Instead they are bait. Bait is defined as food used to entice fish or other animals as prey. Just as bait is used to lure animals as prey, some battles lure us in as prey. This is why we need to be mindful of the battles that we decide to enter.

On yesterday, I drove a neighbor to our local Kroger. As I waited my turn to have some meat cut, she waited at the sub-station for someone to assist her. A deli worker was assisting a customer with a "hot item", and my neighbor interrupted asking who was working the area. The deli worker responded with a very bad attitude. Immediately, my neighbor took the bait and entered the battle. She yelled back and they went on and on. To make the story short, the manager was called twice, and the sandwich was free. The manager looked at the shocked look on my face and said let me fix you a sandwich because I see it all over your face. After everything calmed down I spoke with the deli worker. Before I could say anything she said I apologize if I offended you. I told her that she hadn't offended me and that I apologized for the huge blow up. We smiled at each other and I walked away. Well by this time my neighbor was upfront still going off. Everybody was looking, and I was mortified.

As I drove home, she was still going on and I think I almost lost it. I told her that she had acted worse than the employee. I understood that initially the employee had a bad attitude, but two bad attitudes don't make for a solution. My neighbor had taken the bait. She had entered a battle that she had won, but it didn't do anything positive for her. That was a battle that she should have walked away from. What did she gain other than a sandwich? By the end of the argument everyone is upset, and you are all bent out of shape about a rude comment. I know their have been times that I snapped, but lately I have realized that sometimes it is best to be silent. You never know who may be around viewing your actions. Taking the bait can end you or your career in an instant. Would it still be worth it?

As I explained to her, sometimes we allow our inner problems to force us to take the bait. When we take the bait we are in the battle fighting hard for something that is not worth it. We all need to learn that some battles are not worthy of our time. Honestly, some battles we are too good for. Some we don't have time for. I would much rather spend my time doing something more productive than fighting a battle that would not do anything for me. So, I encourage you to think before you take the bait. Think before you fight a battle that will do more damage than good. Learn to CHOOSE YOUR BATTLES WISELY.