Ignoring rules never pays off

I recently was a rulebreaker and lived to regret it.

1) I forgot the rule to criticize in private and praise in public.

2) I forgot the rule to never write when upset

3) I forgot the rule to educate gently

I know these rules. I know that the word ladies almost always gets my heart pumping, especially when used as a description. I know how hard it is to express a complete thought in the limits of a Twitter or text message.

Fortunately, my target has thick skin (his description, not mine) and I'll work harder on remembering my rules for my own good and the good of the village.

Speaking of rules, ever heard of "Stop, Listen and Learn?" Tom Wickham says:

"Remember when we were little and made that mad dash to the street corner, eager to cross over to the other side? Our parents were likely in a mad dash of their own to keep us from meeting our end beneath a vehicle. Their words of admonishment usually included the firm axiom to "stop and look both ways before you cross a street".

That same axiom can be altered to affect a similar result in the public relations field. In this case "stop, listen and learn" should cause any PR practitioner to properly assess how he or she will approach a situation."

Tom explains what he means in this post.