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Renew
Online
You may now renew your annual membership dues online. Annual dues are $45.00.
By Leslie Olding,
Streamlined
Development
We all know right from wrong, but sometimes in business
the lines between the two can get a bit blurry. In a large
corporation, a bad ethical decision on the part of an employee might
have little or no immediate consequence to the overall success of
the operation. However, to a home-based business owner, it can mean
the difference between success and failure.
We all operate our businesses in southeastern Connecticut, which is,
for all intents and purposes, the equivalent of a small town. In our
little neck of the woods, everybody knows everybody, and the local
grapevine serves more people than McDonald’s. If you make a misstep
in business here, chances are good that ten people will have heard
about it by lunchtime. By dinner that number will have tripled, and
if you haven’t corrected the situation by then, you’re in deep
trouble. Poor ethical judgment can quickly and easily ruin a
business and the reputation of its owner.
If you’re struggling with an ethical dilemma and are unsure how to
proceed, here are a few tips: Ask three trusted friends what they
would do if they were in a similar situation. They may offer an
alternative that hasn’t occurred to you. Ask yourself if you are
justifying or rationalizing your decision, that is, arguing in its
favor. Doing the right thing rarely needs to be justified; it’s
obvious. Try to imagine the reaction if everyone you know learns
what you have done. Will it be negatively perceived by anyone you
plan to do business with in the future?
Not all ethical issues you encounter in business will have clear-cut
answers, but when they do, it is imperative that you make the right
decision. For those murkier dilemmas, the best option is to try to
err on the side of caution. That is, choose a course of action that
will have the least possible negative outcomes. It’s better in the
long run to lose a sale than to jeopardize your reputation with a
poor judgment that will have people questioning your integrity.
Dealing with people honestly and fairly will build your credibility
and cement trusting relationships that are crucial to success.