How important is honesty to you?
By Barb42
@Barb42 (4214)
United States
October 25, 2008 10:53am CST
I have always been a person who believes that honesty is the best policy. I believe that, when you are honest in all your dealings in life, you never have to figure out a way to straighten up something you have told. You don't lie; therefore, you don't have to figure out who you lied to or what you need to say to make sure the lie isn't found out.
We taught our children to be honest. Sure, sometimes, it hurts to tell the truth, but as I said, you don't have to back it up with another lie. There are times we need to keep our mouth shut in order not to hurt others, but if someone asks me something that I need to answer, I will answer it with the truth. I try to dose the truth with love if I am sure it's going to hurt the other person. Or, I may tell them I had rather not discuss the situation. That way, I don't have to lie or have to hurt their feelings.
What are your feelings on honesty? Is it a big part of your life?
1 person likes this
14 responses
@taripres (1499)
• United States
25 Oct 08
Honesty is 100% needed to maintain trust! If someone is dishonest, even if they have not completely lied, all trust is broken because of the expectation of total truth! Not saying that we're always going to be completely honest, but that one time you hold back or twist the truth, all eyes are going to be completely open!
Taripre$
@Barb42 (4214)
• United States
25 Oct 08
I believe a half truth is still a lie; you haven't been honest. I had rather be quiet about something than not be honest. I just try to stay out of conversations where I would like to tell someone the truth but know they won't accept it, or when I hear someone telling someone else a lie when I know the truth. I hate to be put in those circumstances.
1 person likes this
Taripre$
@katsmeow1213 (28717)
• United States
25 Oct 08
I do try to be honest all of the time. I used to have a problem with it, I would fabricate things to make myself seem more interesting, this was back during my teen years. I quickly learned that I was having trouble keeping my story straight, but of course I eventually lost touch with all the people whom I'd lied to, so there was never a need to get the story straight. I just learned my lesson and stopped trying to lie. If I'm not interesting enough as I am, well tough, lol.
1 person likes this
@Barb42 (4214)
• United States
25 Oct 08
Yes, keeping the story straight from person to person would be a problem when you lie. I guess that's one reason I had rather be honest myself. I knew to tell the truth always when I was home or I had a problem with my mother! So I learned at a very young age that it was more productive to be honest. It might not make you many friends at times, but I'd rather have a few honest friends than have a lot of dishonest ones. They say we are known by the company we keep. Glad you did learn it's better to tell the truth. It will get you farther in life, I believe. And it makes you more trustworthy among your friends.
@kittenmc (464)
• United States
27 Oct 08
I agree that honesty is the best policy! That may be why I don't have many friends. LOL! Because I tell you how it is or how I see it. I try not to hurt ones feelings, but sometimes I do.
I know a few people and kin to a few that wouldn't know the truth if it slapped them in the face and it just makes me mad. Just tell the truth in the 1st place and you will be so much happier!
@Anchopy (1453)
• Paraguay
26 Oct 08
Hi barb, I think that honesty is always a good choice, but I don't think that is the best policy.. I think that in each sitiation you have to choice the best kind of answer.. sometimes a white lie is best than the truth and other times is best the truth than any other answer.. that's my opinion
@Barb42 (4214)
• United States
27 Oct 08
There's probably hardly anyone alive that didn't let their kids believe in Santa Claus and the tooth fairy. When our kids got to a certain age and began to question Santa and the tooth fairy, we told them the truth about those. But I was really meaning real out lies that you have to have another lie to back up. There is this man we know that had children that went to high school with our grandchildren. He told that his son got a big scholarship to play football to this college. We know his son didn't get a scholarship, period! AND he went to a college close to home. He also told his daughter got a big full scholarship to a college in another state to play soccer - she didn't get a scholarship, either. AND she even moved in with a boy and dropped out of college. It's these kind of stories that are easily proven to be a lie. This guy exaggerates terribly!
@Anchopy (1453)
• Paraguay
26 Oct 08
when talking to the children, we always said white lies, there will always be white lies. I mean white lies about "Santa Claus", "Tooth fairy" and others things like that, to keep the mind of the children with the imagination and to keep them enjoying the children time, when they grow up, then they'll realize what where truth or lies, but the lies that we told them will now be harmful in the time, that's what I mean..
@zrenjithz (5)
• United Arab Emirates
25 Oct 08
As we all know that in this fast growing world, honesty has no more value.. But still as humans many of will have the tendency to become honest but the world and people around us will never help us to do that... So friends, my suggestion is to become as honest as possible to your fellowmen..
1 person likes this
@Barb42 (4214)
• United States
25 Oct 08
I would like to clarify your statement with "with some in the world, honesty has no more value". With those of us who value our character and reputation, honesty is of the utmost importance! It is true that some will be dishonest no matter what. They must see it as a good character trait. It just makes them hypocrites in my eyes. It's like the old saying 'you can't have your cake and eat it, too'. In other words, you are either honest or a liar. There is no middle ground.
@eksmith (64)
• United States
28 Oct 08
Honesty is vitally important. Brutal honesty is not needed. You can tell the truth and be honest with love.
I also believe that when a person lies or is dishonest, they are basically saying that they can't trust themselves nor can they trust the person they lied to. The main reason that people lie, in my opinion, is because they can't face themselves and feel that no one else will want to face them either.
I have a personal philosophy that I live by...If I'm going to have to lie about it, then I don't do it. If the truth will hurt, then I say it with love and compassion to lessen the hurt.
Part of loving someone is being honest with them.
@Barb42 (4214)
• United States
28 Oct 08
"Part of loving someone is being honest with them."
That is so true. We need to learn to speak the truth with love. I don't think it helps the other person to withhold the truth from them. Lately, I've heard of people keeping the truth from a dying person. In fact one told us that the doctor told them about the mother and they aren't telling her. But I find that to be wrong. I'd want to know if I had a terminal disease and not long to live. Don't tell me the exact time I might die because that could cause one to become disheartened and become depressed. But we need the time to make adjustments,perhaps get our life in order. And these people are keeping that from their mother.
Lots of people don't know how to get the truth over to others without upsetting them, so they do tend to lie about something. If you have to lie to me, just don't tell me anything. Lies are so easily caught up with.
@rubypatson (1841)
• India
26 Oct 08
i agree, truth is the best at all situations, especially to your near and dear ones, i firmly belive that truth, although sometimes it hurts, but its the truth, better then lie any day
@Barb42 (4214)
• United States
26 Oct 08
I want truth in all things. It can be soft at times, so not to hurt others intentionally. But, we have a Bingo Hall going up right by our house. One of the guys who is with the construction company had pushed down too many trees near our back yard and got off the machine and came down and talked to us. He said, "I know how you feel." Well, he doesn't. I said, "I'm sorry, but if you haven't gone through this, you don't know how I feel." And he had to admit I was right. If he had said, I feel for you, I'd have said, Thank you, but that's not how he put it.
@ronaldinu (12422)
• Malta
26 Oct 08
I try to be honest and speak out my mind whatever it takes. Diplomacy was never my forte but I try to say things in a nice way. Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind. © ronaldinu 2008
@highflyingxangel (9225)
• United States
26 Oct 08
Honesty, especially in romantic relationships is really important to me. I can't be fully comfortable in a relationship unless I know that my partner is going to be pretty straightforward with me. If they're always looking somewhere else or doing other things that they know would bother me and then they're lying about it, even if I can prove it, that bothers me. That's now how relationships are supposed to be.
@isaiah12 (416)
• United States
26 Oct 08
I believe if you lie it ends up bad in the end. You have to try to remember your lie and keep it up. And then what happens when the truth comes out? Which sooner or later it does. You lose the persons trust!
Honesty if very important to me. I tried my best to raise my daughters to be honest. And it is important to me for others to be honest with me.
When someone has been dishonest with me, they lose my trust. And once you have lost my trust, it takes alot to regain it.
There are very few people I trust completely.
@Barb42 (4214)
• United States
26 Oct 08
I want to be remembered as an honest person. My husband once said he thought we might be too honest. That remark came after something that happened at his work years ago. People don't want honesty! They want appeasement and we are just not that kind of people. If you don't want the truth, don't come to me.
@fifileigh (3615)
• United States
26 Oct 08
especially in my fiction novel i wrote--it is honest fiction...fiction inspired by reality, real life and real people. everything is real in it, but the story is fiction, and the characters are fictionalized version of the real people i created them from
@23uday (2997)
• India
26 Oct 08
hi friends
i completely believe in honesty and honesty is the best policy and i follow this
principle.i dont cheat and never copy in my exams and i write my exams very
sincerely.i do my work very honestly.
and never cheat anyone for my selfishness and always i try to help others.all these
i have learned from my parents.
bye
