“My Bad”: Practical Wisdom from Pick-Up Basketball

On the basketball court in the closest local park, fouls happen in every game – and there’s no ref to call them.

It’s no big deal, though. Even (especially) when the foul is unintentional, the offender just owns up to it – “oops, my bad” – and we all move on. No matter what the intent (aggressive defense? general clumsiness?) it’s the effect that matters. I made a foul, he gets the ball, “game on! as we say.

The same principle holds true off the court. No matter what your intent may be, it’s the effect of your actions and words that matters.

The life insurance marketplace is extremely over regulated, as are most marketplaces. Unfortunately, a lot of this bureaucratic excess stems from the misconduct of financial representatives. Wouldn’t it be great if consumers could depend on us to just say “my bad” when we messed up, and then fix the problem? Then again, consumers and their lawyers would have to be willing to remove their finger from the lawsuit trigger to give us time to do that.