IS THE WHOLE WORLD DISHONEST - YOU AND ME INCLUDED? by Noel Peebles
Let's face facts; most of us are quick to doubt the integrity and honesty of people involved in certain professions. We find it easy to mistrust politicians and are wary of people involved in car sales, insurance, real estate and the advertising industry. There's even a shadow of suspicion cast over the legal profession thanks to the fraudulent activities of just a few solicitors.
To be brutally honest; most of us are guilty of mistrusting others from time to time...aren't we? It's easy to draw quick conclusions and, rightly or wrongly, point the finger of suspicion based on someone's occupation.
No doubt it pays to be cautious and perhaps, by doubting others, it is a way of boosting our own self-esteem. Indeed, it is also an effective way of deflecting doubts about our own levels of honesty?
So, who can we trust? Well, despite what I just said, most people are basically honest. HOWEVER, there are degrees of honesty...and, I'm not convinced that anyone can claim to be 100% honest. Maybe you are the exception? But, before you claim that high ground, think about the following scenarios:
Let's assume, for example, the ticket collector on a train fails to collect your $3 fare. What would most people do? What would you do? Would you rush up to the office and pay the money for your uncollected fare? Or, would you just consider yourself to be lucky? Would you justify not paying the $3 fare by convincing yourself that others didn't pay... so why should you? Perhaps you didn't pay because it was only $3, or the office was nowhere nearby, or because the train company can afford it, or because the train was late getting you to work three days last week (they don't deserve your $3 fare). But, these are all excuses aren't they? The point remains; you didn't pay the $3 fare.
Now, imagine you are checking your sales docket when unpacking your groceries. You notice that you were undercharged by $1 on an item. Do you return to the supermarket and pay the difference or, do you once again, consider yourself to be lucky?
And, what if you spot $10 on the floor in a shopping mall. Do you ask the man next to the money if it belongs to him? Don't be stupid! He'll say "yes" even if it isn't his...won't he? Would you hand the $10 in at a nearby shop and risk having a shop assistant pocket it? Maybe the easiest solution is to say "finders keepers" and pocket the money yourself?
What if it was $100, or maybe a bag containing $10,000? Would that change the way you act? Would you still keep the money, hand it in at the mall office, or maybe hand it over to the police? I guess we would all act differently depending on the circumstances and our degree of honesty... and, perhaps whether or not we thought we could get away with it. Am I right?
Then there is the subject of taxation. If someone were to pay you $50 in cash for a job, would you declare it as taxable income? Would you consider it to be a perk? Perhaps you might justify not declaring it, by convincing yourself that you already pay too much tax? Tempting, isn't it? Yet, deep down we all know that by not declaring taxable income, we are defrauding the government and fellow taxpayers.
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to pretend I'm "Mr Perfect." Accepting 'cash jobs' is something most people do at one time or another. But, it doesn't make it right.
You see, the point I'm making is that, we are all guilty on occasions of pointing the finger at others. Yet, maybe we are not as "squeaky clean" as we might like to think we are. We get away with it, because society seems to condone certain levels of dishonesty.
What happened to the old-fashioned values our grandparents lived by? They were taught there were no degrees of honesty... you were either honest or you were dishonest. Maybe those days were a bit extreme, but has society now become too tolerant?
- Stealing a candy bar or a car are both wrong. - Cheating on one answer in an exam is the same as cheating on the whole exam. - Telling a "white lie" is still lying.
As Benjamin Franklin once said "Honesty is the best policy." He was right! Honesty builds trust which, when you think about it, is the foundation of all relationships.
Trouble is; honesty can be a hard master, because without moral discipline we are slaves to temptation. But frankly, nobody forces us to do the wrong thing. We make our own decisions and we make our own judgments of others, knowing what we are likely to expect and accept.
That's why none of us is perfect. Being honest and showing integrity is a choice each of us makes several times daily. The disparity comes in the degrees of dishonesty that each of us considers to be acceptable. That means, depending on a given scenario, it's likely each of us will accept a different level of honesty (or dishonesty). Thus, we make our decisions based on our own self-imposed standards and what we think others will accept.
So, the next time you hear of a politician, or someone in car sales, or maybe a real estate salesperson being accused indiscretions or of dishonesty...STOP and think for a moment. Let's not defend them or try and justify what they have done. If they are wrong, then they probably deserve what's coming to them. They have obviously over-stepped the mark of what society considers to be an unacceptable level of dishonesty or indiscretion. Ask yourself this; at what point did he or she over-step the mark of what you, or society, would consider to be acceptable?
You see, despite what we like to think, certain levels of dishonesty are acceptable. It is just a case of knowing what society is likely to expect or tolerate as being acceptable. It's true that some people have the attitude of, "if you can get away with it - why not?", whilst others live by higher self-imposed standards.
Personally, I believe integrity and honesty is just as important today as it ever was. Honesty builds trust and is the foundation of all relationships. No one forces us to be dishonest. Being honest and showing integrity is a choice each of us makes several times daily. It is just that some of us have higher self-imposed standards, so we are inclined to less tolerant of those who don't.
It just goes to show that none of us is perfect!
Copyright Noel Peebles, Market Leaders Ebooks. NOTE: The following information must be included if you reprint this article: About the author: Noel Peebles is author of ‘Sell Your Business The Easy Way’ http://www.sellabusinessforsale.com A practical guide to helping small business owners maximize their return when selling their business.
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