RULE TO BREAK

“Be spontaneous”

Let me tell you a story about someone who contacted me after reading The Rules of Life. He sent me a private letter via my publisher so no one else could read what he had to say. Apparently he found The Rules of Life in an airport bookshop and decided to buy it. But there was a very long queue so, on the spur of the moment, he decided to walk out without paying for it. He’d never done anything like that before, and couldn’t say what had prompted him to break the law.

He felt guilty for a few moments, and then put it out of his mind. However, once on the plane he started reading the book and encountered a number of Rules that made him feel dreadfully guilty. From Rule 3 onwards the guilt started to grow, and by Rule 33 he was abject. He realized he’d let himself down badly, and had really messed up.

He could have kept quiet and put it down to experience, but he didn’t feel right just leaving it alone. So he decided to make up for it as best he could. He sent me a letter of apology explaining what he’d done, which I have to say I found immensely entertaining given the irony of having picked that particular book to make off with. He also sent me a £50 note to compensate for having stolen the book.^* And he bought and paid for three more copies to give to friends. He even ‘fessed up to his wife, despite knowing that she would verbally shred him for doing such a thing.

And he very kindly gave me his own Rule that he’d learnt from this, which I’m now passing on to you. Deep down he knew at the time that what he was doing was wrong. His conscience, his heart, was telling him so. A little voice tried to warn him but he didn’t listen to it. So his Rule was that you should always listen to that little voice, because you’ll regret it if you don’t.

He also made sure that when he did acknowledge his error, he did everything he could to put it right. If you don’t listen to that voice before you’ve gone wrong, the next best thing is to listen to it afterwards and make amends as well as possible. And, as this particular reader shows, it’s never too late to listen. As a result of his belated honesty, he learnt a useful lesson, gave me a great Rule to share with anyone who wants it, donated £50 to charity, bought three books, and provided me with one of the most interesting pieces of correspondence I’ve ever read.