Family Value of the Month: Honesty

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This month’s Pay4Freight Family Value of the month is honesty.

What would you do if you went to a store, bought a bunch of things, and when you got home you discovered that you weren’t charged for one of the more expensive items that you brought home?

Would you drive all the way back to the store to pay for the item or would you tell yourself that it’s a “gift from the universe?”

The value of honesty seems deceptively simple. “Always tell the truth.”  Most of us were raised by our parents to do just that. Yet, telling the truth can be difficult. It can shake things up; it can put one at risk. People who have been whistleblowers in their companies are intimately aware of the risks of honesty.

Being honest requires the courage to:

• look closely at a situation and really see what is there
• to ask the hard questions
• to listen to the hard answers
• to take the necessary action.

But the pay-off for being honest is huge.

• When we are honest we feel more at peace with ourselves.
• When we are honest we can make decisions that are good for us in the long run.
• When we are honest we create trust in our relationships.
• When we practice honesty it becomes easier to hear the inner voice’s guidance.
• When we are honest we set an example for others to do the right thing even though it might be hard.

If you silence that inner voice with rationalizations (little lies to the self) the voice will speak up less and less often. Then one day when you may need its guidance it might not be there at all.  Being honest creates a compass to steer by.

At Pay4Freight honesty is something that we honor and uphold.  It has allowed us to create long-lasting relationships based on trust and respect.  It allows us to come to work every day and feel good about what we do in the world.

Let’s be honest.  The right thing to do would be to go back to the store and pay for the item that the store clerk didn’t ring up.  You’ll sleep more easily, the store clerk will probably talk about it and all the people who hear the story can call upon your example if they are ever in a similar situation.

Honesty is not always easy, but it’s always the best policy!