The Power of Honesty

A favorite old story:

A guy is walking down the street at night, and sees a man on his hands and knees under a streetlight. “What’s the problem?” he asks.

The stranger says “I dropped my keys.” The first guy gets down and helps the stranger search. For ten minutes they do this, and there is just nothing to be found.

“Are you SURE you dropped your keys here?” he asks.

“Oh, no,” the stranger replies. “I dropped them across the street in the vacant lot. But there’s no light there.”

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I asked a question today, basically asking for reaction to the notion that HONESTY is the first step in problem solving. In the above story, the truth is that you have to take actions that are relevant to the issue. That even if it is EASIER to search “where the lights are” (say, within the circle of things I understand) it is inefficient and ineffective. The truth is that the keys are across the street. You might search in the dark, get a flashlight, or wait until morning. But once you see the truth, crawling around under the light is just as absurd as it sounds.

The “Three Gates” is a useful tool: “Is it true? Is it useful? Is it kind?” before speaking. Not all truth is kind, but if your intent is to improve a person’s life, kindness helps to create rapport, as well as…well, being kind, which is a value in itself IF you feel connected to them.