Last night I spoke to the Sugarcreek Rotary about Ethics. It seems like every year we hear about unethical and illegal behavior in the business world. John Maxwell coined the phrase, “There is no such thing as Business Ethics”. I agree, ethics is ethics, whether you are at work, at home, at school, at church, in government or at the ball field.
Here are a few of the highlights:
Five factors that keep us from always being ethical:
- Pressure
- Pleasure
- Power
- Pride
- Priorities
Then I gave five Anchors to help us always be ethical:
- Ethical behavior is seldom a last-minute decision.
- Leading by example is crucial for integrating ethical behavior into a business culture.
- Personal ethics are formed by our inner-space view of the world around us.
- The people within an organization must believe in its core values or those values will be worth very little.
- Friendships are a key part of shaping and maintaining your convictions.
Here are some quotes I used:
“If a man can accept a situation in a place of power with the thought that it’s only temporary, he comes out all right. But when he thinks he is the cause of the power, that can be his ruination.” Harry Truman
“Pride is at the bottom of all great mistakes.” John Ruskin
“The character that takes command in moments of crucial choices has already been determined. It has been determined by a thousand other choices made earlier in seemingly unimportant moments…It has been determined by all the day-to-day decisions made when life seemed easy and crisis seemed far away, the decisions that piece by piece, bit by bit, developed habits of discipline or of laziness; habits of self-sacrifice or self-indulgence; habits of duty and honor and integrity or dishonor and shame.” Ronald Reagan