Honesty

So if you’re talking about leadership philosophy, and so far we are, here’s one that’s got to be on the list: Be honest. Well, duh.

Here’s the thing about honesty: it’s usually hardest when it matters the most.

But when you stick to it you’ll find benefits you never planned for, along paths you hadn’t thought were even related to the situation in which you were honest.

Unfortunately, early in your academic and professional career you can get away very easily with not being honest. You can commiserate with a classmate over his “unfair” grade on the last test, even when you really believe he spent too much time that week partying instead of studying. You can blame the project plan if your teammate misses critical deadlines when you really believe that she spent too much time surfing the web instead of working.

The consequences for these dishonesties are relatively slight in the near term, and for the sake of camaraderie you will be tempted to take this path.

I recommend that you don’t take this path. Your character is shaped by your habits, and your habits are shaped by repeated action. Don’t develop a dishonest character.

Starting on the path of honesty early will serve you well long into the future. You’ll develop tact and grace, learning how to be honest without being mean, in a much lower stakes environment than if you don’t start until you are the leader of an outsized team. And you’ll develop a reputation for forthrightness that will serve you well as you are considered for advancement. But it’s never too late to adjust your path and take a new approach—the benefits of a change that includes more honesty will start to accrue almost immediately.

There are all kinds of opportunities to be honest with people, and you’re already familiar with the usual ones. Tomorrow I’ll share an example with you in which an issue that fundamentally boils down to honesty often gets wrapped up in the clothes of other issues, leading us to make the wrong decision. These are the situations to watch out for and that we all need to build skills to handle more effectively.