Prompt: Write about what it means to be dependable.
All right, the prompt for today, July 12, 2026, is: Write about what it means to be dependable.
I guess it means following through, right? It means creating an expectation that people can trust you’re going to do what you say you’re going to do.
Now, I have to admit that, for a very long time in my life—and still to some extent today—I was extremely late. Exceedingly late. Disgustingly late. I was late for a lot of things. I was late for work. I must have been fired from more jobs than I can remember because I was late all the time. At least three. Probably more, but at least three.
Even meeting up with friends, I would be late. If we planned to meet at seven, sometimes it would be hours before I’d show up. I’m not proud of that. I think that’s terrible. I was dependably late, if that means anything, but I was always late.
I think it just took me a long time to find that rhythm—a routine, a consistency within my own life—so that I could be dependable or relied upon by others. And I think that’s probably where it begins.
At least for me, that’s really what dependability was. I couldn’t rely on myself.
I wasn’t following through on commitments. Simple things like keeping my apartment clean, paying bills on time, cleaning the litter box. Those little things you need to do in your daily life to establish your mile markers, I guess. So you know where your day is going, you know where your day has been, and you can play with the time or the distance between those markers.
Once I was able to do that for myself, then outwardly I became more reliable, more dependable. People could trust that I would follow through more often.
Maybe that’s where all of these things we’ve been talking about so far this July begin. Maybe they begin within yourself. Maybe how you act toward others is, in some way, a reflection of how you treat yourself.
Maybe.
I don’t know. It’s all speculation, really. I’m not trained in any way to make claims about any of this.
But I think that’s what it is. I think people like to know what they’re getting. They like consistency in people, just as they like it in everything else. That’s why we all went to Starbucks—or used to, anyway. I can’t seem to buy a Starbucks anywhere near me now. But I make coffee at home, so it doesn’t really matter.
Right on.
You can find this prompt at Letters’ Lounge, www.letterslounge.com. Of course, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this or any of the other prompts, so please do leave a comment or a link to your blog or audio journal, and I’ll be sure to check it out.
All right, folks. I’ll talk to you tomorrow.
This transcript was lightly cleaned up with the help of AI to improve readability while preserving the original voice and intent of the recording.
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