A company founder needed to choose his successor. He studied resumes and talked to references, but he asked only one question during the final interview: "How much is 2 + 2?"

Ann, the first candidate, worried that there was a trick but answered straightforwardly. "There’s only one correct answer: four."

Terry, who had an engineering background, was more creative. "Depending on whether you’re dealing with positive or negative numbers," he said, "the answer could be plus four, zero, or minus four."

Chuck, the last candidate, looked the questioner in the eye and whispered, "How much do you want it to be?"

While Ann and Terry took different approaches, they both provided an honest answer. Chuck, on the other hand, wanted the questioner to know he was willing to say or do whatever it took to succeed. Some employers may find this combination of creativity and moral flexibility highly attractive. I’d show him the door.

You see, Chuck is a manipulator and rationalizer, and they don’t make good employees. They search for excuses rather than solutions and are more concerned with looking good than doing things right.

People like Chuck who are adept at inventing justifications that sound good but aren’t true are simply clever liars. Eventually they will be found out. Remember, an employee who will lie for you will lie to you.

Without conscience, there is no credibility. Without credibility, there is no trust. And without trust, there is no future.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

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R- E- S- P- E- C- T. Aretha Franklin reminded us how it’s spelled, but a lot of us need coaching on how to show it. In both personal and political relationships, the failure to treat one another with respect is generating incivility, contempt, and violence.

There’s an important distinction between respecting a person in the sense that we admire and hold that person in high esteem and treating others with respect. While respecting others is desirable, respectfulness is morally mandatory. Thus, people of character treat everyone with respect, even those who are not personally worthy of it.

The way we behave toward others is an expression of our values and character. Thus, we should treat others with respect, not because they have a right to be respected but because we have a moral duty to do unto others the way we want them to do unto us. Again, it’s not because they deserve it; it’s because doing less would diminish our own character.

That’s the message in an old story about the politician who caught himself being drawn into mud slinging and name calling. Once he realized he was lowering himself to his opponent’s level, he stopped and said, "Sir, I will treat you as a gentleman -- not because you are one, but because I am one."

It can take a lot of self-control to be respectful to people who are nasty, dishonorable, or disrespectful to us. Still, our inner sense of integrity should help us resist temptations to fight fire with fire. As Lily Tomlin said, "The problem with the rat race is, even if you win, you’re still a rat."

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Webmaster at 12:41 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (1)

Matt, an eighth-grade teacher, was in a hurry at the store. Guests were about to arrive at his home, and he had a small list of things to buy. With 14 items in his basket, he decided to chance it and use the "10 items or less" express line.

His heart pounded when he saw Phil, one of his students, come toward him. Matt talked a lot about honesty and ethics in class and, as he feared, Phil was all too happy to catch him doing something wrong. With a big "gotcha" smile, Phil loudly proclaimed, "You have too many items. That’s cheating."

On the scale of moral transgressions, misusing an express line is a misdemeanor. But the inconsistency between Matt’s words and actions seriously undermined his message about the importance of ethics as well as his personal credibility. Whether on duty or not, teachers are expected to set a good example. It’s the same for all people in authority, including parents and bosses. When they fail to do so, there are consequences.

Yes, it’s unfair to judge a person’s entire character by such small offenses, but many will. Although we judge ourselves by our best intentions and most noble deeds, others are likely to judge us by our last worst act.

Here’s a simple strategy: Act as if there’s a tiny TV camera on your shoulder broadcasting all your words and actions. If what you’re thinking of doing isn’t consistent with the image you want to convey, don’t do it.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Webmaster at 12:39 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (2)

For most of us, there’s something both wonderful and worrisome about large family gatherings. On the good side, we often can experience real pleasure in spending time with relatives with whom we have so many common memories of people and events.

What’s more, being with parents, siblings, and cousins who’ve known us since childhood often helps us see ourselves more clearly, without pretensions or illusions of self-importance.

Finally, shared family history and the ties of blood and marriage can create a tribal sense of identity and belonging that is comforting.

Yet few families avoid the rifts and feuds caused by unpaid loans, unreturned favors, unfulfilled requests for help, broken promises and, most of all, careless or cruel comments or gossip. Although we think we should love everyone in our family, we often don’t. In fact, many of us have to struggle against the wisdom of the old adage: "familiarity breeds contempt."

But in a world so filled with throwaway and transitory relationships, we should more highly prize the stability and strength of family ties. In dealing with family, we have a greater, not a lesser, obligation to avoid unkind, insensitive, and hurtful remarks that can spawn resentments and grudges. We need to monitor the tendency to feel competitive or envious and, instead, take real pride and pleasure in the success of any family member.

Some of your most enduring and endearing friendships will come from your family.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Webmaster at 12:37 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

A young boy was walking with his father along a country road. When they came across a very large tree branch, the boy asked, "Do you think I could move that?"

His father answered, "If you use all your strength, I’m sure you can."

The boy tried mightily to lift, pull, and push the branch, but he couldn’t budge it. Discouraged, he said, "Dad, you were wrong. I can’t do it."

His dad said, "Try again."

This time, as the boy struggled with the task, his father joined him. Together they pushed the branch aside.

"Son," the father said, "the first time you didn’t use all your strength. You didn’t ask me to help."

This is an important lesson. There are many things we can’t do alone, but that doesn’t mean we can’t get them done. We’re all surrounded by resources that can be mobilized to help us achieve our goals including family, friends, and faith.

Sometimes we fail to ask for help because of pride or stubbornness. Sometimes we think it’s a sign of weakness to admit we need a hand. And sometimes we don’t even think about asking for help. Whatever the reason, it’s a waste.

It’s important that we learn to use all our strength. This includes inner resources such as discipline, courage, and even love. It also includes outer resources. Just as we should be willing to help others, we should be willing to ask the help of others. It’s one of the great things about being human.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

*This is derived from a story by David Wolpe in Teaching Your Children About God (Harper Perennial, 1995).

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You’ve probably heard me talk before about the Six Pillars of Character, the ethical values central to the CHARACTER COUNTS! movement. But where did this list come from?

In 1992, the Joseph & Edna Josephson Institute of Ethics invited 30 leading educators and representatives from religious and secular youth-serving organizations to a conclave in Aspen, Colorado, to develop a strategy to overcome resistance to teaching values. What resulted was an eight-sentence proclamation called the Aspen Declaration:

1. The next generation will be the stewards of our communities, nation, and planet in extraordinarily critical times.

2. In such times, the well-being of our society requires an involved, caring citizenry with good moral character.

3. People do not automatically develop good moral character; therefore, conscientious efforts must be made to instruct young people in the values and abilities necessary for moral decision making and conduct.

4. Effective character education is based on core ethical values rooted in democratic society; in particular, trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, caring, fairness and justice, and civic virtue and citizenship.

5. These core ethical values transcend cultural, religious, and socioeconomic differences.

6. Character education is, first and foremost, an obligation of families and faith communities, but schools and youth-service organizations also have responsibility to help develop the character of young people.

7. These responsibilities are best achieved when these groups work in concert.

8. The character and conduct of our youth reflect the character and conduct of society; therefore, every adult has the responsibility to teach and model the core ethical values and every social institution has the responsibility to promote the development of good character.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

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This is a big week for me. It’s National CHARACTER COUNTS! Week, a movement started by the Joseph & Edna Josephson Institute of Ethics, the nonprofit organization established in honor of my parents.

The truth is, I am not only proud but amazed at how big the CC! movement has become.

In 1992, when the concept of confronting the issue of deteriorating social ethics by advocating the importance of core moral values and personal character was launched, schools and most youth-serving organizations conscientiously steered away from teaching values. Fearing it would incite protests or lawsuits from one group or another who disagreed with the values selected, they took the road of value neutrality grounded in what I call "moral agnosticism" -- the belief that no formulation of ethical values could transcend cultural, religious, and socioeconomic differences.

The central theme of the CC! movement is that value neutrality on core issues like truth, personal responsibility, and justice is itself immoral and that schools and other organizations that help shape the ethical perspectives of youngsters have a duty to promote the development of positive character traits like trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship.

One group I call "Politicizers" couldn’t believe a secular strategy based on shared values wasn’t simply a ploy to promote partisan political ideologies. Another, the "Trivializers," ignored research and common sense and tried to dismiss character-development efforts as either impossible or ineffective. The "Cynics" were certain that schools would never have the courage to trade politically safe values-neutrality for a program promoting ethical virtues.

The battle is hardly over, but as the millions celebrating CHARACTER COUNTS! Week 2007 prove, we’re getting stronger and we’re not going away.

Visit CharacterCounts.org/ccweek to find out what you can do.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Webmaster at 12:53 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

If you knew you were dying, what would your final words be?

I was at a luncheon where more than a dozen highly accomplished people were given two minutes each to answer that question. They were prominent scientists (including a Nobel Prize winner), successful business executives, and noted academics, doctors, lawyers, journalists, and one astronaut. Despite their imposing resumes, not one person made a single reference to their work or vast accomplishments.

It proved the truth of the insight underlying Harold Kushner’s statement: "I never met anyone on their deathbed who said, ‘I wish I'd spent more time at the office.’"

Our work may be a vital part of our lives, but in the end what matters are people and relationships.

All of the speakers addressed their last words to loved ones -- a life partner, child, sibling, or special friend. The words were from the heart, and it was a touching experience. But what struck me most was realizing how unlikely it is that any of us will actually have the opportunity to deliver final words. Death is not likely to be that predictable or efficient.

The fact is, the way we live our life, the choices we make, and our daily words and actions may be the final messages we send to our loved ones. So if there’s something you should say -- expressing your love or gratitude or maybe regrets for things you did or failed to do about rifts in the relationship -- say it now and say it from your heart.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Webmaster at 12:51 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

Think of the five most successful people you know. Now think of the five happiest. How many made both lists?

Most people think of success in terms of possessions and achievements, while happiness is a state of mind. It’s common to think success will bring happiness, but that’s often not the case.

Think about what the people on your happy list have in common. I’ll bet they have better-than-average relationships, especially with their spouses and children. Of course, other factors besides good relationships also tend to produce happiness -- like good health, enjoying one’s work, and having fun. And people driven by spiritual and ethical values usually are more content than those who measure success in terms of prosperity, pleasure, and peer approval.

Still, if I had to choose the one thing most essential to happiness, it would be good relationships.

Think about it. The happiness quotient of people who live high-flying lives of the rich and famous or the swinging lives of the young and beautiful is surprisingly low. Yes, these people experience plenty of moments of soaring satisfaction, but they become harder to duplicate and sustain. Often such people are left with an "Is that all there is?" feeling that can lead to depression and boredom.

No matter how rich, sexy, or famous one is, happiness is almost impossible for people who have hurtful and unsatisfying relationships. Yet people surrounded by the affection, love, and respect of others can find their way to happiness in spite of economic hardship, hard work, and even ill health.

That’s good news. We can’t all be rich, famous, or beautiful, but we can all find people worthy of our love.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Webmaster at 12:50 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

Bill Belichick, Senator Craig, Marion Jones, Michael Vick, billions lost to corruption in Louisiana and Iraq -- it just doesn’t stop, does it?

Well, despite the continual stream of bad news, things aren’t all bad -- and there are lots of people who refuse to allow our society to be hijacked by liars, cheaters, and thieves.

You don’t hear as much as you should about all the good things going on because the news media is preoccupied with satisfying the public’s addiction to scandal, disaster, and gossip.

Thus, you’re not likely to read that more than 5 million youngsters and their teachers and parents will be participating next week in various activities to promote and celebrate virtue and good character.

The unifying event is called National CHARACTER COUNTS! Week, and during October 21-27 about 12,000 schools and other organizations will express their commitment to repairing the hole in our moral ozone in their own unique ways. Some will have assemblies or parades featuring kids who have shown exemplary character. Others will award prizes for essays or engage in community service projects.

Though the methods are varied, the common theme is that character does count, that we can and must teach, enforce, advocate, and model the core virtues that make people good and our communities great.

These virtues, called the Six Pillars of Character -- trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and good citizenship -- are simple yet timeless. They also are the antidote to the toxic effect of all the bad stuff that is polluting the air.

If you want to learn more about what’s happening during CHARACTER COUNTS! Week or, better yet, how you can become part of the solution, visit
www.CharacterCounts.org/ccweek.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

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A master carpenter who worked for the same builder for nearly 50 years announced he wanted to retire. The builder told him how much he appreciated his work. He gave the carpenter a $5,000 bonus and asked him if he would build just one more house. The builder owned a magnificent lot with a spectacular view and he wanted to build a dream home.

The carpenter was bitterly disappointed at the small bonus, but his last building fee would help him buy a small cottage, so he agreed to build the dream house.

The carpenter prided himself on his uncompromising commitment to quality, but his resentment caused him to cut corners, ignore details, and accept shoddy workmanship from other workers. He even looked the other way when some of them substituted cheaper materials and pocketed the difference.

When the house was finished the builder shook the carpenter’s hand and with a huge smile he gave him an envelope with a thank-you card and a folded piece of paper. The carpenter was disdainful -- until he unfolded the paper and found the deed to the house he had just built.

The carpenter was ashamed that he had misjudged his old friend and betrayed his own values, and he was remorseful that the house he would live in for the rest of his life was made so carelessly.

Our character is the house we live in and it’s built piece by piece by our daily choices. Deceit, irresponsibility, and disrespect are just like shoddy workmanship. Whenever we put in less than our best and ignore our potential for excellence, we create a future full of creaky floors, leaky roofs, and crumbling foundations.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

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In 1999, a conference was held in Scottsdale, Arizona that generated the CHARACTER COUNTS! Pursuing Victory With Honor sports program. During the conference, Bob Costas asked Coach John Wooden about his decision to retire. The Coach launched into a description of “the last game I ever taught.”

He chose the phrase deliberately, knowing its impact, but this wasn't an artifice. Perhaps the greatest college basketball coach of all time really saw himself as a teacher.

A few years ago I interviewed Coach Wooden for a short video. He told a story about Amos Alonzo Stagg, a famous football coach who was asked, after an unusually successful season, whether his current team was his best ever. Wooden smiled as he related Stagg’s reply, “Oh, I won’t know that for another twenty years or so."

You see, Coach Wooden explained, Stagg knew that it would take that long to see how the youngsters under his supervision turned out in life. That, after all, is the real test of one's teaching.

Like Alonzo Stagg, John Wooden set out to teach his players not only how to win but how to live honorable and worthy lives. Even now, at 97, the Coach is likely to answer a question by reciting a poem. The last time I was with him he said:

No written word, nor spoken plea
Can teach our youth what they should be
Nor all the books on all the shelves
It's what the teachers are themselves

It is what Coach is himself that creates a legacy of wisdom, dignity, and honor and makes him an example to us all. The historian Henry Adams said, “A teacher affects all eternity. You never know where his influence stops.” So it will be for Coach John Wooden.

You may purchase a copy of the DVD of my interview with the Coach here.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

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This week began by celebrating the ninety-seventh birthday of John Wooden, the legendary coach of UCLA basketball, on October 14.

This week also marks the launch of a bold and comprehensive year-long, character-building sportsmanship program by the Los Angeles Unified School District.

The connection is that this great coach, teacher, and homespun philosopher helped draft the CHARACTER COUNTS! Arizona Sports Summit Accord -- a document that forms the basis of the new Pursuing Victory with Honor/True Champions program that will reach more than 1,200 L.A. high school coaches.

Coach Wooden’s declaration that “a coach is first and foremost a teacher” is the central message of this program which seeks to inspire and invoke coaches to play a more conscious and consistent role in developing the character of the young people they teach.

Coach Wooden is, in every sense, a role model. He was an extraordinary basketball skill-builder and strategist as well as an intense and passionate competitor who always wanted to win, yet his interests and influence always went beyond athletics. Though he achieved unparalleled success, including 10 NCAA championships, he never measured the success of his coaching in terms of wins. His highest goal was to bring out and enhance the very best in the young men who played for him.

In today's sports environment, sullied by too many examples of cheating, self-promotion, ego and greed, we need to encourage youth coaches to follow John Wooden’s example.

Millions of youngsters play sports. Think how much better they and society will be if they are lucky enough to play for a teacher-coach. We shouldn't settle for anything less.

For more information about the LAUSD sports program call 800-711-2670.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Webmaster at 1:07 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

Can a job applicant properly withhold information about a criminal record or being fired from a previous job? Can a woman who has just started dating say nothing about a previous marriage or abortion? These are problems of candor. When does an ethical person have a duty to reveal negative information about his past?

First, let's reinforce a basic premise that all dimensions of honesty -- truthfulness, lack of deception, and candor -- are important to establishing and sustaining relationships of trust. Intimacy flourishes in an atmosphere of openness and vulnerability. While knowledge of negative information can damage some relationships, secrets discovered later are often fatal.

Second, there is a much higher expectation of full disclosure in personal relationships than in business relationships.

But, to paraphrase Jack Nicholson, not everyone can really handle the truth. So why should someone sabotage himself by telling a new boss, friend, or potential life partner things that could impede the relationship?

As tempting as it is, keeping such matters secret is like burying landmines within the relationship. Undisclosed truths build fault lines under the foundation of important relationships and, in a person of conscience, they create guilt, fear, and insecurity.

Trust is just a state of mind and maintaining trust is about meeting the expectations of people who trust us. So here's an easy test: upon finding out the whole truth, will the person who was denied knowledge feel betrayed? If so, the honorable thing is to fess up.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

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As a full-time ethicist -- can you believe there even is such a thing? -- I spend lots of time talking about right and wrong with parents and politicians, kids and corporate managers, journalists and generals.

One thing I have learned is that while most people have a high self-image when it comes to ethics, being a good person and doing the right thing is easier said than done. For one thing, it's not always easy knowing what's right. If I was supposed to have learned everything I needed to know about ethics in kindergarten, I must have been absent that day. Second, having the moral will power to put ethical principles above self-interest and always do the right thing takes a lot of character, especially when no one else seems to be living up to such high standards.

The fact is that for most of us, trying to live a good life engages us in a constant struggle between what we want to do (our desires) and what we should do (our ethical duties). Even basically good people may lie occasionally, cheat just a little and rationalize away moral compromises. It's human nature. No one is perfect.

But it's also human nature to strive for perfection and to care about our character. When it comes to ethics, you don't have to be sick to get better. And getting better is important if we want to improve the quality of our lives and set the example we should for our children.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Josephson Institute Editor at 4:36 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (1)

When my daughter Abrielle was four she came running down the hall screaming, "I don't want to die! I swallowed a stone!" I immediately determined that nothing was obstructing her throat but she was still in a panic.

"It's okay sweetheart, you're not going to die," I said.

She thought I didn't understand. "But I swallowed a stone! It was a blue one!" she emphasized, as if I should realize this was a particularly deadly stone.

Apparently, a babysitter, in order to discourage her from putting things in her mouth, told her she could die if she swallowed the wrong things, and to Aby, that included polished stones I'd given her.

I assured her she was in no danger; that the stone would come out in the morning when she went "poo poo." She ran to the toilet, "I want it out now!" She was pushing so hard it looked like a blood vessel would burst. She was frightened and desperate.

Moments like this test and refine your values. Truth and reason weren't working. So I lied.

"I know what to do," I said and I ran to get a spoonful of maple syrup. "Here, swallow this syrup. It will melt the stone."

"Will it be gone?" she asked.

"Absolutely," I replied.

She swallowed the syrup and announced triumphantly, "Daddy melted the stone. I'm not going to die." The emergency was over, but I hated lying to her. Though I worried she would never trust me again, I had to tell her the truth a few weeks later.

Funny, she trusts me even more. Truth is really important, but trust is the ultimate treasure.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Josephson Institute Editor at 4:35 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

I heard a story about an emergency medical technician I’ll call Jake who was summoned to help an unconscious woman. When he arrived she had no pulse and he could tell from her color and dilated eyes that she had already suffered serious brain damage.

Still, he did his job exceptionally well and after many efforts to restart her heart, she regained consciousness. Her family kept in touch with him and he learned that the woman was permanently blind, paralyzed and unable to talk.

Jake often brooded about his decision to save her, wondering whether his technical knowledge thwarted nature's plan imposing a terrible burden on her family and trading her eternal peace for years of suffering and indignity.

His painful doubts darkened his life for many years until he received a note from the lady's son. The note said, "Mom died last week and I want to thank you for giving me so many extra years. Though at first I felt only grief, I came to find peace and gain strength from my time with her. Every day I'd hold her hand and tell her about my accomplishments and problems. I could always feel her strong pulse and I came to know that she talked to me through her heart. With every beat she sent me love and encouragement. I treasured our time together."

As Jake’s professional skill restarted the heart of a dying woman, her son's ability to feel gratitude, and willingness to express it, repaired the self-inflicted wound to Jake's heart.

This story is more about attitudes than actions. The quality of our lives is determined not so much by what we do or what is done to us, but how we choose to think about our situation.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Josephson Institute Editor at 4:33 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

When Ron gave his seven-year-old son Nick a ball and bat, Nick wanted to play immediately. Ron said, "Son, baseball is a serious game. You have to practice hard before you can play it."

The boy went outside and began throwing the ball in the air and swinging at it over and over. After an hour he said, "Dad, can we play now?"

Ron said, "Show me what you can do."

Nick threw the ball in the air, took a mighty swing and missed. "Strike one," he said enthusiastically. Nick tossed the ball again and missed again. "Strike two," he yelled.

Ron said, "Concentrate, Son. Remember, three strikes and you’re out." The boy threw the ball again and swung so hard he fell to the ground after hitting nothing but air. Ron winced, but Nick had a triumphant grin.

"You struck out. Why are you happy?"

"'Cause I’m really good at pitching."

You have to love Nick’s attitude. He may not turn out to be a great hitter, but he’s likely to lead a happy life. What’s more, he’ll probably bring warmth and cheer into the lives of others because an attitude like his is contagious.

Pessimists think people like Nick delude themselves by looking at the world through rose-colored glasses. Yet Nick’s world is just as he sees it. His decision to view himself as a successful pitcher instead of a bad hitter will not only make him happier, it will contribute to his success.

It’s not easy, but if we develop the wisdom to treat frustrations and failures as empowering experiences and generate the strength to let go of self-destructive resentments and grudges, our lives will be filled with a lot more sunshine.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Josephson Institute Editor at 4:31 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

Generally, I don't promote ethics by appealing to self-interest because it suggests that personal advantage always flows from ethical conduct. It also encourages people to think of moral judgment in terms of self-serving cost-benefit trade-offs.

The fact is that high ethical standards often seem to cost more than they pay. Honest citizens pay more taxes than dishonest ones; people who always keep their word often pay a heavy price for their integrity; scrupulous salesmen can lose business; and politicians can lose elections because of their honesty.

People of character do what's right because it's right, not because it's profitable. They look at the costs associated with honorable conduct as the dues they pay to maintain integrity, self-respect, and the esteem of those who love them.

Unfortunately, the prevalence of lying, cheating, and promise-breaking in business, politics, sports, and even personal relationships suggests that, for many people, these intangible benefits are neither certain enough nor substantial enough to justify the cost. So maybe we should stress the biggest and most undervalued benefit of good character: Those who care about their character and consistently struggle to be good and decent people invariably have better relationships than those who prefer a morally flexible approach.

Traits like honesty, responsibility, compassion, and respect may seem like naïve and expensive luxuries in the hurly-burly competition for advantage, but they are priceless assets when it comes to building sustainable and rewarding relationships with spouses, children, friends, and co-workers. In the end, good relationships marked by love, trust, respect, and kindness are essential to all enduring forms of happiness.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Josephson Institute Editor at 4:25 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

Why are so many companies taking ethics so seriously these days?

The obvious answer is to stay out or get out of trouble.

After all, lots of bad things happen when an ethics-based scandal hits.

They start with substantial legal, accounting, PR, and consulting costs. But these are nothing compared to the costs associated with damages to reputation, customer relations, internal morale, difficulties recruiting new employees, and increased scrutiny and cynicism of regulators.

Then there is the enormous diversion of the company’s top leaders. Instead of tending to business, the CEO and other key executives often are consumed with strategizing defenses and responses to accusations of wrongdoing.

Finally, there’s the possibility of huge fines, prolonged litigation with major verdicts, debarment from future business, and even long prison sentences.

So, though I prefer to emphasize all the good things resulting from a sustainable ethical business culture, when I consult with corporations in the midst of or recovering from an ethics scandal, I know the immediate and pressing incentive is to avoid or minimize the likelihood of real or perceived improprieties.

Thus, ethics has become a critical risk-management strategy.

The problem is that the traditional focus on legal compliance -- written ethics codes or standards of conduct and mandatory ethics training -- has proved to be wholly inadequate. There’s simply no evidence that these efforts significantly deter wrongdoing or bad judgment.

A deeper and wider approach is needed, and this requires a move from a rules-based compliance mentality to a values-based ethical culture.

In essence, a truly effective ethics initiative must teach, enforce, advocate, and model (we use the acronym “T.E.A.M.”) core ethical values in recruiting, hiring, training, compensation, promotion, and discipline. It’s more difficult than codes and courses, but in the end, it’s a lot cheaper.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Josephson Institute Editor at 2:56 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

This is number four on my list of all-time favorite commentaries.

According to a story in the book Hugs for Dad by John William Smith, a father asked his son after grocery shopping to return their cart to the retrieval area. Although it would have taken only a minute, the son protested.

"C’mon, Dad," he said, "there are carts all over the lot. None of those people returned theirs. No one expects them to."

Then Mom chimed in. "For heaven’s sake, they pay people to collect the carts. Returning one more won’t change the history of the world. Let’s just go."

Dad was about to surrender when he saw an elderly couple walking together to return their cart. After a moment, he said to his son, "We’re not responsible for what other people do, but we are responsible for what we do. There are two kinds of people: those who put their carts away and those who don’t. We put our carts away because that’s the kind of people we are."

This story isn’t just about grocery carts. It’s about doing the right thing in a world that seems to promote rationalizations and excuses that demean or trivialize simple acts of virtue. There are two kinds of people: those who find the strength to do what they ought to and those who find excuses not to.

People of character do the right thing even if no one else does, not because they think it will change the world, but because they refuse to be changed by the world.

I’m not saying people who don’t return their shopping carts are moral felons, but there is a lot to admire in people who have such a strong sense of decency and responsibility that they put principles above convenience.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Josephson Institute Editor at 2:51 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

Recently, I attended a fundraising dinner for the Erika Whitmore Godwin Foundation, the creation of Susan and Wendell Whitmore, a couple who transformed their personal mountain of sorrow into a living monument to their daughter Erika who died in the prime of her life.

About half the people at the dinner had lost a child. Regardless of the age or the cause of death, these bereft parents all shared a common sentence – to live the rest of their lives with a hole in their heart.

No one could have blamed them if they had retreated to a dark dungeon of despondency, but the remarkable people in that room refused to surrender. They made a painful peace with their reality so they could move on, so they could laugh, so they could enjoy the company of others and savor good memories without being consumed by regret.

Their strategy is not to bury their pain so deep that they forget their loss. They want to remember. They want to celebrate and honor their child -- not by weeping, but by improving the world in their youngster’s name.

The Whitmore’s foundation and their website (www.GriefHaven.org) guide parents recently maimed by the death of a child out of the black swamp of despair and help those still suffering from unhealed wounds find a road to a brighter future.

People like the Whitmores confirm that pain is inevitable, but suffering is optional. They also teach us that a rewarding and meaningful life can be made from the rubble of personal calamity.

All of us have within us the power to endure tragedy. But we also must know that we give both life and death profound meaning and significance when we draw life-affirming and heart-healing energy from even the most horrible events.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Josephson Institute Editor at 2:46 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)

Even 14 years later, Marc Klaas’s story evokes a parent’s worst nightmare.

In 1993, his 12-year-old daughter Polly was kidnapped from her own bedroom. For weeks, the country watched with horror and faint hope as thousands of volunteers and professionals searched for Polly and her abductor. Although her killer was eventually caught, communication and policy deficiencies limited police effectiveness.

Recently, I had the privilege to present an award to Marc Klaas and his wife Violet for their relentless efforts through education and legislation to protect children from crimes.

I asked Marc how he coped. He admitted he was initially consumed with total despair at his loss and anger against Polly’s killer, the police, and even God.

Ultimately, he said, he came to recognize he had three options: flight, fright, or fight. He decided to fight. He turned the energy fueling his pain and rage into something positive.

He founded the KlaasKids Foundation with a simple statement: "Polly gave meaning to her life, but I am the one who will give meaning to her death. Through the Foundation we can create her legacy and ensure that her death was not in vain."

And he’s done just that. He created for Polly a legacy of activism that has made the world safer for all children. But just as important is the towering example of character he provides to all who have or will suffer personal calamities.

In rejecting the role of a helpless victim and refusing to surrender to his grief, he reminds us that we all possess the resources to overcome even the worst that can happen to us.

In the end, it’s not our circumstances that determine the quality of our life, but our response to them.

This is Michael Josephson reminding you that character counts.

Posted by Josephson Institute Editor at 2:43 PM | Permalink | Leave a Comment (0)