How to Choose to Do the Right Thing
- 1). Ask yourself how your decision will affect other people. Take their feelings and considerations into mind and think about them in terms of the Golden Rule: treat other people the way you want to be treated.
- 2). Follow basic ethical principles. This means being responsible, fair, respectful of others, trustworthy, and civic minded. Make the choice that adheres to those notions as opposed to those that translate into money, material goods, or popularity.
- 3). Think in the long term rather than the short term. Choices that create benefits for a larger number of people over time tend to be more ethically sound than those that serve only immediate goals or those that benefit a small number of people.
- 4). Examine the choice from a publicity angle. If CNN were covering your decision or the local newspaper ran a banner headline on it, you'd want it to appear admirable instead of merely self-serving.
- 5). Ask yourself if your mother would approve of what you're doing. You'd be surprised how often asking yourself this question translates into doing the right thing.