Be honest or lie?

Is honesty the best policy? A million dollar question it is. Is there such thing as “white lies”?

One of the most honest persons I’ve ever known recently said to me, "I struggle with honesty every day of my life." I was both surprised and curious at his remark, so we ended up having a long talk about it. I went away from that discussion realizing that all of us are caught in a battle between right and wrong, good and evil. They’re life forces that have been around since the beginning of time, and it’s impossible to escape being in the middle. That’s exactly where we were placed and we have to make a choice; seldom tough.

Sadly, we’re surrounded by all forms of dishonesty. Even more sad is seeing that what we can "get away with" has practically become a sport. Being able to "pull off" something is often considered an achievement, a feat worth openly bragging about. Proud!

Only the dumb or unlucky ones get caught. "Everybody’s doing it" once said by a friend. To reinforce it, there are a number of movies and TV programs which seem to glorify deceit and deception. They virtually exalt them to fine arts. To top it all off, the advertising world bombards us daily with not-so-subtle messages that we should be someone other than our real selves in order to make a good impression on others.

Another reason we all struggle with honesty is that it’s hard work. It requires more time, thought and energy than we’re sometimes willing to expend. Every day, we get a steady barrage of messages that we deserve things, we should have them now, and there’s a quick and easy way to get them. So we often choose expediency over integrity. Why slave away on an assignment when it’s easier and faster to copy someone else’s? Why follow all the rules in a business transaction when a little manoeuvring here and there can close the deal quicker?

Why re-invent the wheel? Its round enough!

We not only buy into the "everybody’s doing it" mentality but also develop a short-cut philosophy of life. Without realizing it, we become morally lazy. It’s easier and quicker to be dishonest.

Since our childhood, we are taught the importance of honesty and why we should be honest. We do try our level best to be honest to our parents, teachers, friends and almost everybody with whom we meet and succeed in achieving this. However, when we come across, how dishonesty helped some people achieve some great things quickly and in a better way than us, we tend to go the wrong way for quick success. This, often results in creating more problems, which sometimes cannot be solved at all.

Honesty is essential in each and everything we do to create a good impression and ensure the other person that we are capable and trustworthy. Whether you are a student, a teacher, a doctor, a business person or an employee, honesty takes a person a long way in the journey of life. Even if you find it difficult to perform well at your place of work or in studies, honest and sincere people are given many chances to prove themselves in their fields. In case of dishonest people, second chance is very rare to come because the society feels that he will keep on repeating his mistakes. Thus, this is a lesson to those people who think that honesty is not the best policy.

The honesty is the best policy quotes of eminent thinkers suggest that, one can gain respect in the society only by being honest. People adore only those who make consistent hard efforts to achieve their targets and overcome all the obstacles which may come in their way. Thus, once we enter the viscous circle of dishonesty, it becomes very difficult to come out of it and lead a normal life.

However, is honesty the best policy? Answer is yes, because instead of living a life under constant fear, we can live it with pride and honour with our head held high, if we follow the path of honesty. Being dishonest for a small gain is really not worth in the long term perspective considering the evils through which we have to go once we drift away from the right path. Is there such thing as “white lies”? Answer is no. You lie once, you’ll have to lie again to cover-up the first lie..and the cycles continues.

But there is also the other side of the coin of which we should consider. Sometimes, there are situations wherein you have to be dishonest to save yourself or someone else when we know that the person is innocent. In such cases, speaking lies may not come under 'Dishonesty' as we are not doing anything wrong. Thus, it depends entirely on the situation, and smart people realize and know how to deal with a difficult situation by not compromising on their principles and ideals. However, a dishonest way to protect yourself should not be made a habit and you should recall the values taught to you, if you feel like going with the wrong way by proper self-control.

Moral of the story: Honesty indeed takes a person to the level where he deserves to be…

Have a good day peeps!