Honesty Pays Big Dividends

As you know the Black Belt Excellence quality for the month is HONESTY. The definition of honesty is ”the inner-strength and confidence that is obtained by demonstrating truthfulness, trustworthiness, and integrity with individuals, institutions, society, and with yourself.”

I hope that by now you have all taken the Honesty quiz and discussed it with your parents. If you have not done this important activity yet I suggest you do so immediately. In order for you to be an honest person you must make a commitment to truthfulness. Being honest is about doing the right things and telling the truth even when no one else knows.

I have found in my life that being honest in the beginning will help you in the end. Several years ago, I returned home from the store after buying groceries. As I put the groceries away and checked my change I found that the cashier at the store had mistakenly given me a $100 bill instead of a $10 bill.

I took the money back to the store and gave it to a tearful young girl who was the cashier. She was new on the job and was worried about getting fired because she had lost the $100 and did not know where it had gone.

She was grateful to me for my honesty and I felt good for doing the right thing even though I could have kept the money and no one would have known. Doing the right thing and being honest and truthful felt good but that is not the end of the story.

A month or two later it was Christmas season and I had $100 in my pocket to go do some Christmas shopping after work. I was teaching at Spanish Fork High School at the time. Imagine my shock when I went to pull the money out of my pocket after lunch and it was gone!

I was sick to my stomach and did not know even where to start looking for money at a high school with over 1,000 students. A few minutes later, a student delivered the money to me at my classroom. They told me that they had seen the money fall out of my pocket as I was walking down the hall.

A great feeling of gratitude and relieve came over me and I remembered how I had returned that money to the girl at the store a few weeks earlier. Then I realized that honesty works both ways.

I want to challenge all of you to demonstrate a great standard of honesty in your lives. Every day you are faced with the opportunity to cheat somehow or tell a lie. Remember, that how you act when no one is watching you reveals your true character.

By demonstrating this high standard of truthfulness, you will begin to earn and receive a benefit far greater, which is the trust from others. From receiving trust from others you will earn greater responsibility and have greater opportunities in the future.

Remember, honesty always pays big dividends!