Honesty

How important is honesty to you? I went on a course for work last week and we had to find our core value, I was surprised a little, but not massively, to find mine was honesty. I believe in honesty, I believe in telling people the truth, not all the time to be fair there are sometimes when its better not to hurt peoples feelings, but honesty in most aspects of my life is a must.

In work for example if you lie to me Ill know so don't do it. I have far more respect for people who tell me they have screwed up, so as then we can deal with the issue before it gets too big, than someone who lies and covers up what they have done and the problems this causes. They then lie when you catch them out as well. Don't waste my time your not that important to me and Ill deal with you in a different way.

I don't have many friends, don't feel sorry for me its through choice, but the friends I do have I choose carefully because they wont lie to me. If I ask them something they tell me the truth, its as simple as that. I need to surround myself with people that don't tell me what I want to hear but sometimes what I NEED to hear. Here in lies the difference.

I look at some of these celebrity's who surround themselves with people that cater for their every whim. Are they truly happy? I'm not so sure. They are never told when they are out of order, they are never told when they cross the moral line, is that an existence that makes them happy? I don't believe it does. How can it? Tiger Woods is probably the biggest victim of this. He used his power and influence to cause havoc in his personal life and didn't apologise for it. Did that bother me? Not really I don't buy products because he endorses them but his fans do and he treated them with utter contempt.

Would the world be a better place if people were more honest? Possibly but it wont happen. Honesty has to be something that you believe in, something that really matters to you, something that you are willing to accept rather than brush under the carpet, something that no matter how hurtful or painful sometimes its what is needed. Its how you react to peoples honesty that matters more than anything else.

I teach my kids to be honest as possible, I don't get it right all the time but I'm trying as I should do as their father. I don't however hurt their feelings with unnecessary honesty, sometimes I tell little white lies, but when they do something wrong I expect them to tell the truth and when I ask them to tell me the truth, to be honest enough to do so.

Honesty is important to me, it shapes the people I am friends with, the people I work with, the people I tell things to. It wont change and I wont change or leave this behind just to suite your needs. I never have and I never will. Why should I?