Pete Smissen

Okay, so first things first, a leopard is one of those big cats covered in spots.

It's fast, stealthy, absolutely not something you'd want to bump into while camping.

And the spots are the dark markings on its fur.

literally, the idea is pretty simple.

A leopard can't remove or change its spots.

They're permanent.

And figuratively, humans can be a bit like that too, right?

People usually end up slipping back into the same old habits they used to have.

Same behaviours, same problems, same personality traits.

And that's when people use this expression.

Usually, when someone keeps making the same mistakes they've always made.

When somebody says they've changed, but clearly they haven't.

Or when you're a bit sceptical that they'll ever really change deep down.

I bet someone popped into your head immediately when I said that too, didn't they?

All right, let's go through some examples of how to use the expression, a leopard can't change its spots.

Example one, workplace behavior.

Imagine this, Dave swears he's finally going to start arriving on time for work.

Monday morning rolls around, 9.15, coffee in hand, same excuse as always.

Oh, traffic was insane, mate.

What would you say here?