Honesty

Honesty, is being fair and just in character and behaviour, not stealing or cheating.   It must be one of the harder values to apply across all aspects of your life, particularly the workplace. The pressure to achieve and deliver to time, or else, generated within many workplaces, can often mean the person delivering an unwanted message, being made to suffer as a consequence. (A sign that others need to improve their application of personal values.) Additionally the temptation to take advantage of a trusting employer, or using the resources of a not so generous employer for your own purposes because "they owe it to me", can be hard to resist. In communications it is easy to want to tell "white lies" to save hurt, seemingly a conflict of values.   Not an easy circumstance to deal with as the enquirer is unlikely to have considered the possible answers prior to asking their question and may not appear to have the strength to take the honest answer.  In this instance considering long term implications of your response, and heeding advice from your committee should provide you with a right course of action.

Contrary to popular belief, this is a value where you will benefit most from its application.   Your increase in self esteem by being honest could initially be seen as poor return for your trouble when you see those around you appearing to benefit from their dishonest actions. What you do not see is the weight they have to carry through their lives from knowing what they are doing is dishonest. They may have many material possessions but their life will not have true happiness and contentment. They will be unable to trust those around them or enjoy loving relationships and other facets of a good life.

Thereis another benefit to living by personal values and that is, "if you really need something and you ask for it you get it".   There is a word of warning with this, you have to quite specific about what you want or else you will have some funny surprises as to what turns up in response to your request.

  back to Personal Values