Sometimes you do the right thing, and people hate you for it.
Sometimes you do very bad things, and you get lucky off it.
You can only judge for yourself what you should do, and you shouldn’t just go on what you think other people think you should do.
Our society self-regulates for the most part — we are lucky to generally feel that we shouldn’t steal, hurt or kill each other as a whole.
Grey areas are the trickiest topics to handle
For things like whether or not you should tell someone what you heard, or be truthful with a potential employer about something you know is a certainty even though it means you might hurt your chances for the job — those are all grey areas that don’t technically hurt anyone physically or emotionally.
These are the trickiest topics to handle.
For example: a job might require that you be on call 24/7, being very present, demanding and stressful. If you are planning on having a baby in the next little while and want to take 9 months off to leave your employer in the loop — what do you do in that case?
Do you tell them that in spirit of honesty?
Or do you keep your mouth shut and pretend you’re a career woman who doesn’t want any kids any time soon?
Personally, I wouldn’t say anything, if I knew I was the RIGHT person for the job — I am confident that I can always find a way to make the situation all right — perhaps by subtly training a replacement or finding ways to lessen the load so it isn’t such a strain on the company.
So I am not saying to disclose things that will really make an employer choose someone else over you, but if you know you REALLY can’t hold up the end of your bargain (you don’t have the right skills or the personality for the job), then don’t take the job from someone else who might need it.
If you aren’t an outgoing person who likes to talk to strangers or cold call, don’t become a salesperson.
Don’t take on responsibilities that you are certain aren’t right for you, especially if it’s just for the money, because it doesn’t just affect other people or the company as a whole, but it will eventually come around to hurt you by making you stressed out about not knowing your job or not loving what you are doing.
Not every action that is good, generous and giving is the right one.
Think about parents who give too much to their children by spoiling them, paying for everything, and giving in to their demands all the time.
They’re doing it out of love and generosity, yes, but are they doing the RIGHT thing for their children to position them as independent, strong adults in the future?
In that perspective, it may not be the right thing, although I agree it’s a good and generous thing.
What regulates all of the above, is your rational judgment.
I believe in karma.
What goes around, comes around. If you put out good vibes, they come back to you.
People get what they deserve and what they put out there.
For instance, I didn’t lie to get a contract in November.
But just 2 months later, I found a contract that was right for me. If I was on the contract that I lied to get, I wouldn’t have been available to take this one!
Life really doesn’t offer any guarantees, but if you stick to doing the right thing, I really believe you will end up all right in the end, most of the time.
Of course, that isn’t a guarantee either, but at least it puts you on the right path.