Honesty Must be Practiced

By | April 17, 2018

[April 17, 2018]  I frequently tell the story of how West Point military cadets behave when they are allowed to buy small treats from one of the many vending machines. On top of the machines are coins that accumulated in the change slot and no one has claimed.  No cadet dare take a coin for themselves, as this would be stealing.1  Honesty, they learn, is the first step to good leadership.

Honesty is the first chapter in the book of wisdom.” – Thomas Jefferson, 3rd U.S. President

Surprisingly, I’ve been asked in my seminars on leadership, why honesty is valued as a leader trait.  The answer is, of course, self-evident to any experienced person.  I’ll write it anyway.  Honesty inspires dependability, fairness, and frankness.  Honesty may not be the easy path to take, of course, but it is only through it that we can achieve a useful level of wisdom.

To practice honesty means to practice it in all things.  That is not an easy task.  There are some, like psychotherapist Brad Blanton, who believes that the only way to truly achieve honestly is to practice it “radically.”  He says that the most effective form of communication (and necessary for effective leadership) relies on honesty.  Learn to communicate what you see, he says.

Psychologists who study the intricacy of honesty, tell us that we are often dishonest with others and ourselves repeatedly throughout any given day.  With that fact in mind, they suggest being prepared to take some tough feedback if you want to be more honest.  This means adopting the right mindset, confess when you lie, cheat, or steal, support others who are honest, and be sensitive to others while being honest.

If you don’t have a good dose of humility while being radically honest, you will have a problem trying to comply.  There is a war on honesty today.  Like the good Boy Scout motto says, be prepared!

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  1. The U.S. Military Academy at West Point has a code of conduct that states, a cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do.
Author: Douglas R. Satterfield

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28 thoughts on “Honesty Must be Practiced

  1. Willie Shrumburger

    Good article on a topic that cannot any longer be ignored.

    Reply
  2. Delf A. "Jelly" Bryce

    This is why honesty must be practiced: ABC7/KGO-TV sports anchor Mike Shumann was pulled from Sunday’s Game 4 between the Warriors and Spurs after video surfaced of him taking the jacket of a Warriors team employee, Steve Berman of The Athletic reports.

    Reply
  3. Greg Heyman

    I never thought of it this way. The practice of honesty leads to wisdom. Wise words from a wise man.

    Reply
  4. Jung-hoon Kim

    The true leader is the one who knows himself and knows he must practice to be proficient.

    Reply
  5. Tracey Brockman

    I think this is an important point to be made across all age groups. As they say (and correctly I will add), PRACTICE MAKE PERFECT.

    Reply
  6. Dale Paul Fox

    Very good points made here Gen Satterfield. I always tell my boys that if you don’t practice, you’ll never be any good at (fill in the blank). It doesn’t matter what behavior or thinking, if you don’t practice it, then it will either deteriorate or die off.

    Reply
  7. Tomas C. Looney

    I like this blog for several reason and the top two reasons are: 1) great daily articles and 2) great comments section.

    Reply
    1. Mr. T.J. Asper

      Same here. It also gives me a point to talk about members on my local ball team.

      Reply
  8. Joe Omerrod

    Timely article. Reading everyday about something on leadership is one way to practice your knowledge about leadership. Like the boy who got better at baseball (thanks Mark), practice will make you better.

    Reply
  9. Mark Evans

    No one escapes the consequences of failure to practice what they want to be better at. When I was a kid, I was the worst baseball player on my team. I hated baseball. My coach said that by doing just a little extra practice (more than the other boys) I could be the best on the team. I wanted to beat my buddies so I did as I was told. I was never the best overall player but I became the best hitter and had more runs in the last 10 games than any other player.

    Reply
  10. Dennis Mathes

    Good article today and good timing. Our young college students should take heed to this advice.

    Reply
  11. Yusaf from Texas

    A truly good point made here today. Millenials, be sure you read this!

    Reply
  12. José Luis Rodriguez

    Yep, that is the solution alright. Never lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do. Gen Satterfield, you’ve certainly put your finger on the solution in my opinion.

    Reply
    1. Anita

      Couldn’t have said it better. Follow the rules (unless they are immoral) and you will do well in life.

      Reply
  13. Drew Dill

    At first I thought you were off a little on this topic because a good person always has an honest character. Then I got to thinking that maybe it was because we were doing exactly as you are suggesting, we practiced hoensty (and other key traits) but without really thinking about it. Good job here on this post. But … our young folks need to take this advice very seriously.

    Reply
    1. Shawn C Stolarz

      Yes, like Yusaf and others have said before, us older folk have already been through the practice phase and now consider it old new. But the young must focus and practice those good characteristics that will stay with them a lifetime and help them be succuessful.

      Reply
  14. Danny Burkholder

    Like all good character traits, if we don’t focus on keeping them sharp, they will dull with age.

    Reply
  15. Jerry Jones

    Of course this is what our moms have been telling us since we were toddlers but perhaps with different words. The meaning is the same; be truthful, don’t take from your sister, and be a good boy.

    Reply
    1. Dale Paul Fox

      It was my maternal grandmother who educated me on this. Practice! Practice! Practice! she would say. It worked for me.

      Reply
  16. Army Captain

    Excellent point and one that should be made more often. Honesty, like anything good we do, must be rigidly practiced or it will no longer be what we want in good people.

    Reply

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