What defines us?

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” That comes from Aristotle, or someone who translated a line by Aristotle.

What defines us?

Each day, as we go about our life, we do this and that. Rarely do we think of the unseen consequences of our actions. Of course, we know the outcomes of some of our actions and behaviors. We know, when we mark our students’ papers, they will get a grade. We know, when we go to staff meetings, our voices will be heard. But we rarely think of the results of our actions in the long term.

Are we who this man says we are?

We choose to meet a friend and have fun instead of working on a soon-to-be-due assignment. We go to a movie with our buddies rather than visiting an elderly aunt. We take a vacation and have fun, knowing we have stretched our purse strings. We choose to stay close to certain friends and not to others, regarding some as just acquaintances. It is hard to tell the meaning of all our actions, even though we make choices every day.

I sometimes encourage my students, using this proverb from Aristotle, so they know they can do well and excel if they keep trying. I would like to see them make hard work a habit. I believe in the normal curve. I know that the majority of people can do well because we possess more or less the same intelligence.

Do these behaviors and actions define who we are? Most of our actions are innocent, but in the end, probably everything we do defines who we are.

We like to spend our money in certain ways. We like to use our time in some fixed manner. We act and react toward others in ways that reflect our personalities (who we are over time).

I wonder if, in old age, we feel remorse over our behaviors and actions. Do we ever wonder why we are who we are?

For Reflections on Nursing Leadership (RNL), published by the Honor Society of Nursing, Sigma Theta Tau International.