Honesty

Since when did honesty become so overrated?

I have never understood telling a person one thing and then saying something different when they are not around. I have never understood lying about intentions or thoughts to try to turn two people against each other. I have never understood how using deception as means of control works to keep people in charge.

In my view, a leader needs to be honest about intentions, thoughts and beliefs. The quickest way to lose followers is to tell them one thing and do another. It's not possible to build a strong following based upon deception and lies. This may seem like it is working for a while, but sooner or later, it will all come crashing down. Once the lying becomes public, the leader becomes nothing more than a bad joke in the minds of the followers and they lose all credibility they may have once had.

Take responsibility for your actions. Be honest and live your life by example. Followers need to believe their leaders practice what they preach. If the leader doesn't do this, the followers will quickly find someone new to follow. We may not see a lot of honesty in the "leaders" of today, but you'd be surprised at how many people are yearning to find an honest leader. Be it in companies, politics or anything else, we are going to get further and do more good in this world if the people leading the charge are honest.

The little adage we have heard for years is correct, honesty really is the best policy. Isn't it about time we started acting like it?