My principles affect the way I interact with the world: the way I speak to my neighbor, my colleague, my family member.
No one wants their tombstone to read, “Here lies Jane Doe. She had a lot of great ideas, but didn’t accomplish any of them.” You want everyone to say, “She really put her money where her mouth was.”
The principle of not speaking unkindly about others is easy to buy into. It’s a clear and meaningful value that makes the world a better place. The challenge is putting it into practice.
In 2009, Melissa Hartwig Urban blogged about a diet experiment she tried for 30 days. She cut out all kinds of things from her diet and created a life-changing, best-selling health program called the Whole30, which is practiced today by millions of people.
Similarly, to bring about real and meaningful change in our speech habits, our relationships, and our world, we have the 30-day Clean Speech program. Think of it as the “Holy30!” For the duration of this month, let’s take practical steps to eliminate problematic speech patterns and put the value into practice.
The formula for this transformation is: Education + Awareness = Change
Education: A few minutes a day of learning what we shouldn’t say
+
Awareness: Daily reminders for 30 days in a row
=
Change: A life of greater peace and better relationships
And you know what? That’s what Judaism is all about. It’s not just a bundle of good ideas and values; it’s a principled life to be lived to the fullest. Actualized. Realized. And Practiced. We feed the poor, we care for the sick, and we build community — we don’t just think about them. We take genuine steps toward improving relationships by bringing our values to life.
Here we go!
Daily To-Do:
Find and commit to a regular time every day when you can spend 3 minutes watching this video series.