What do you stand for?

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/06/2020 (2003 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

What are your values? What do you stand for?

Have you answered these questions? And, if so, have you figured out how to enact and live out those values in your day-to-day life?

Rarely are people stopped in their tracks and asked these questions. But they’re important for both individual and societal good.

So why don’t we talk about them more, especially through education at a young age?

School curricula are chock-full. They’re designed to teach students the facts and concepts they need to have a basic understanding of the world and society in which they live. Extracurricular activities give kids the social and personal skills they’ll need as adults.

But ethics are largely left out of the conversation. They’re woven in with the “social skills” kids might learn, such as teamwork. Or they’re clumped together with the self-discipline students must develop to pass  exams. While these characteristics are important, neither fully encompasses ethical behaviour. Students rarely get the opportunity to fully learn how important ethics are in their daily lives and how they can cultivate the emotional and intellectual abilities they need to think and act ethically.

It may seem as simple as “make good choices,” or “treat others the way you want to be treated,” but it’s not.

Have you ever debated whether you should tell your friend the truth about something because doing so might cause the friendship to end? Do you value environmental causes yet still drive a gas-powered vehicle? Have you witnessed an odd interaction between strangers and wondered if you should offer help?

Ethical decision-making is not as easy as it sounds. That’s why the Better Business Bureau Foundation (BBBF) has been providing a course entirely devoted to it. LIFT teaches people how to evaluate situations, weigh the moral and social implications of possible responses, and build courage to carry through with the ethical choice.

It also teaches students the importance of this life skill. While some other institutions (inadvertently or not) show kids they can get ahead by cheating or acting selfishly, LIFT shows them how acting ethically not only benefits them, but also contributes to the community around

them, which creates a healthier social environment for everyone.
“Character ethics helps in the development of our decision making skills. Decisions shape our personal and working lives,” said Len Andrusiak, president and CEO of the BBB serving Manitoba and Northwest Ontario.

Those small decisions, added together, make a big difference in shaping the kind of society we want. Find out more about BBB’s free webinar certificate program. http://bbb.org/h/k0c8