Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/84151
46 • OCTOBER 2012 • WORLD FENCE NEWS If you are a reader of business books, you are no doubt familiar with Robert Kyosaki, author of the Rich Dad, Poor Dad series. I have read most of his works and have found them to be fascinating and enlightening. The story behind the Rich Dad, Poor Dad premise is this: Robert grew up with two "dads": his biological one, a very well-educated man who never gained financial wealth during his ca- reer and died with few assets, and a "second" dad, the father of one of his childhood friends, who never received a decent education, but nonetheless ac- cumulated great personal wealth in his lifetime. This was "Rich Dad," and the book shares the mindset and strategies of this rags-to-riches entrepreneur for What is your integrity worth? BY LANDY CHASE, MBS, CSP accumulating assets and succeeding in life. While you may not agree with all of the beliefs held by Mr. Kyosaki, his work is well worth the read. Recently I read a scathing, per- sonal attack on Mr. Kyosaki by a critic who, in addition to trashing the strate- gies outlined in the books, suggested, without any evidence, that "Rich Dad" never existed, and that Mr. Kyosaki had falsely presented him as a real per- son. Then he really went below the belt; he felt it important to remind the reader that Mr. Kyosaki's occupation is, after all, a motivational speaker and a salesman. As in, "of course he is a liar; look at what he does for a living." I found the entire piece unprofessional, an- noying to read and without any merit whatsoever. This particular statement, however, pushed me over the edge. I have worked with thousands of sales professionals over the last 20 years and also know dozens of speak- ers; some are "motivational" and oth- ers, like me, are more content-based. In any case, the vast majority of the people in both occupations that I have known are among the most ethical and honest people that I have come into contact with. To suggest that a person's occupa- tion determines their integrity level demonstrates, in my opinion, a pro- found ignorance of both people and of business. However, we all know where the stereotype comes from. The sales profession, like any other, has a few bad apples, and those individuals are responsible for tarnishing everyone in it. I think we can all agree that this stereotype has improved considerably, but it is still there. The question I ask you is, are you contributing to it, or are you helping to eliminate it once and for all? Integrity in business is important, no matter what you do for a living, but it is critical if you are in sales, because in your occupation, there are daily op- portunities to be unethical if you so choose. We all have our limits, right? So how much money would it take for you to behave in an unethical manner? How much would it take to get you to cross the line? Here is a good rule-of-thumb to use when you are tempted: if there is a dollar amount that would persuade you to be dishonest, that is also the value that you place on your business in- tegrity. Submit a lunch receipt you found in a restaurant for expenses that you didn't incur? Your integrity is worth about $25. Intentionally charge a cus- tomer for two items when only one was delivered? Your integrity is worth about the price of the item. Pad your consulting services bill by two extra hours that weren't actu- ally performed? Your integrity is worth around $800. You get the idea. At Western Tube & Conduit customer satisfaction and quality are the first order of business. Our Fencepost and Fencerail production is ISO-9001:2008 certified - and our products are manufactured to meet all the applicable state, federal, industrial and regulatory specifications and requirements. While we regularly stock standardized products and sizes, we are happy to provide custom dimensions as well. All our Fence products are galvanized with high purity zinc. We use high frequency welding (ERW) to turn the highest quality strip steel into tubing, and then a continuous hot-galvanizing process to zinc-coat the products smoothly and evenly. A zinc-rich interior organic coating, a chromate conversion coating, and a clear exterior organic coating provide the complete finish package that gives them superior protection against the elements and long life as a result. Gal-Z serves customers looking for shaped Fence tubing as well as corrosion-protected mechanical tubing. It can be purchased in squares and in rectangles, and it provides excellent environmental durability while also fulfilling the need for strength and weldability. In closing, it has been my obser- vation that this willingness to be un- ethical at work invariably is found in other areas of one's life, and that this is a trait that, over time, can grow to the point that it knows no bounds. We have all crossed paths with people in life who no longer make a distinction between truth and non- truth; to him or her, it has all become the same. One never knows whether anything this person says is true or false, because the issue of truth is ir- relevant. He or she will say and do whatever is most useful in the moment to explain their behavior, irrespective of validity, out of simple convenience. When a lie is exposed, he or she will make up a second, more elaborate story that we also know to not be true to explain the first one, and if neces- sary, a third to cover for the second. This sequence repeats itself until the persons being lied to recognize the situation for what it is, drop the sub- ject in question, and quickly decide to distance themselves from the continued on page 48