There are so many mitzvos, we can’t possibly work on everything at once. The idea is to pick one small area to improve in
Rav Shlomo Hoffman ztz’l was a talmid of Rav Issac Sher ztz”l. When he was a 23-year-old bochur, Rav Sher approached him before Rosh Hashanah and asked him if he’d made any kabbalos.
When Rav Hoffman showed his list of kabbalos to Rav Sher, Rav Sher asked if he’d practiced any of his kabbalos to make sure he could really keep them. When Rav Hoffman said he hadn’t practiced, Rav Sher tore up the list.
Rav Sher taught Rav Hoffman that he should only have kabbalos he’s already tried, so that he’s totally sure he can keep them.
Rav Hoffman said he learned an important lesson. We should make sure our kabbalos match our abilities. Maybe we think it’s better to take on something big, but then if we aren’t able to keep it, we’ll feel bad about ourselves instead of growing.
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