Throughout the course of my day, I'm inundated with offers for courses and training of one type or another. Somebody somewhere is always offering the latest in how to work safely, how to stay within regulations. I go to a ton of these more out of curiosity than necessity. A few have actually delivered exactly as they promised, but more often than not they are just another scam to get my $120 registration fee.

As I perused my emails this morning, I got a little reminder that some workshops are available from EPA. This one really caught my eye. How to Apologize. Seriously???
We are being trained in how to apologize for a decision or action we may have taken.

The whole premise of this class is that from time to time, we all take action or in some cases inaction that angers the populace. Somebody somewhere is basically pissed off and we will now be instructed in how to apease them while still doing the very things that are pissing them off.

WTF is that about??? I know that I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed, but I'm not a complete idiot. Apologies are for when we do something wrong, not unpopular. If I make a decision that is inconvenient or irritating, but it's the right thing to do or is going to keep somebody alive or safe then that's just the way it is. I don't apologize for doing my job the right way. I surely don't need somebody to show me how to apologize for doing my job either.

This to me is just further proof that we are a complete mess. If I'm being taught how to apologize for things that aren't wrong, how many other people are receiving that same message?

For myself and anyone else this has to hold true. Don't ever apologize for being right. Don't make excuses for doing the right thing, even at the expense of somebody else's comfort. If you do something wrong, own up to it and by all means offer a sincere apology.

Don't for one second assume that you are fooling somebody by telling them you are sorry if you don't mean it. Most people can tell if somebody is sincere or not. We offer up little signals that we are telling truth or lies all the time. Every time somebody won't look me in the eye red flags are coming up. I know right then and there that most likely I'm being lied to. Maybe this class will teach me how to look somebody right in the eye and lie to them. Perhaps that is really all this class is about, just giving the appearance of regret. Well they can keep their workshop and I'll keep my $210 since they are even more expensive than the norm.