[July 14, 2016] A good friend of mine for many years told me recently that “honesty is no longer valued.” He was exaggerating but also being rather blunt after an experience he had with several younger folks that accused him of being a sexist. “There was no arguing with them,” he told me. For some time now, many leaders in the U.S. military have concerned themselves with what appears to be a war on honesty.
Is honesty valued anymore? Yes, of course, honesty is at the core of human interaction and without it there is little that can be accomplished; in business, the military, among and within families, religion, etc. Honesty is absolutely essential for success in all areas of life and has been written about here on several occasions (see links here, here, and here).
Several business executives and military leaders have confided in me that they are, however, concerned about recent changes in the way people are viewed in leadership positions. Trustworthiness remains one of the top requirements but they see a change. Rather than personal character traits and leader skills being keys to successful leader accomplishments, other factors like race, gender, and political affiliation are becoming more acceptable as necessary.
For example, in the most recent U.S. presidential race, “honesty” and “trustworthiness” are not considered important traits. The public has a low opinion of candidate Hillary Clinton’s honesty and trustworthiness but will vote for her anyway. I have several relatives who will vote for her and they told me it was because she is a 1) woman, 2) a Clinton, and 3) a Democrat. When the subject of honesty comes up in conversation, they claim all the media coverage is about “old news.”
Similar conversations were had about candidate Donald Trump. They told me that because he is a white male, that he is a sexist. Weird reasoning, but reasoning doesn’t matter much in an emotional debate. This is where emotional issues are difficult for leaders to sort through and when they are confused when others don’t listen to convincing arguments.
My friend who was accused of being a sexist is certainly not one. His philosophy in the workplace is simple; come to work on time, do your job, and you will be promoted through your merits. But those are exactly why he was accused of being a sexist and why he was so frustrated. Plenty of women in his organization work for him and are in leader positions they earned. The facts didn’t matter to those making such accusations.
This is why we are beginning to see a war on honesty. Telling the truth, as my grandmother used to say, tells us about you as a person. Many no longer believe it.
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