Acting Ethically
Definition |
When I make decisions based on varied effects that the choice will have on others involved, and choosing the one with the greatest benefit or equality for everyone.
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Criteria |
Definition- I must specify what the issue at hand is
Sound Mind- When I make ethical decisions must not have other issues distorting my decision making Awareness- I must have knowledge of the situation and the effects of each decision Rationale- I must be able to think calmly about what is at hand Action- I must make a decision and act upon it |
Life Examples
Four Wheelers
My last week at camp summer 2014 the family that I was given was the oldest one that I received. I naturally connected with the two oldest (18 and 16), which were boys, more than the others. The great thing is that the two oldest boys also happened to bring with them to camp 3 four wheelers, to take out into the mountains. I asked my boss if I was allowed to go out and ride with the two, who were old enough and responsible enough to handle being out there on their own. The answer I received, was that I was allowed to as long as a parent was with us. To me this answer didn’t seem fair. I knew that I was leaving camp the Saturday that week ended and if I decided to go without a parent that camp wouldn’t take my job from me. However, I also knew that the right thing to do was obey the request of my leadership and to honor our relationship, so that is what I did. We still had a great time going on rides with their mom and dad tagging along.
My last week at camp summer 2014 the family that I was given was the oldest one that I received. I naturally connected with the two oldest (18 and 16), which were boys, more than the others. The great thing is that the two oldest boys also happened to bring with them to camp 3 four wheelers, to take out into the mountains. I asked my boss if I was allowed to go out and ride with the two, who were old enough and responsible enough to handle being out there on their own. The answer I received, was that I was allowed to as long as a parent was with us. To me this answer didn’t seem fair. I knew that I was leaving camp the Saturday that week ended and if I decided to go without a parent that camp wouldn’t take my job from me. However, I also knew that the right thing to do was obey the request of my leadership and to honor our relationship, so that is what I did. We still had a great time going on rides with their mom and dad tagging along.
Game day parking
The house that I lived in my senior year of college was very close to Kyle Field. Not only that but we also had space to fit nearly 18 cars into our driveway without any issues. However, in our contract for our lease we agreed with our landlord that we would not sell parking spots for Aggie game days. There is a small chance that if we sold spots our landlord would find out, but we still have decided as a household to honor our lease and not use our driveway as a parking lot. The loss of not selling spots was close to $500 each game day weekend for our household. A total of $3500 for the 2014 football season.
The house that I lived in my senior year of college was very close to Kyle Field. Not only that but we also had space to fit nearly 18 cars into our driveway without any issues. However, in our contract for our lease we agreed with our landlord that we would not sell parking spots for Aggie game days. There is a small chance that if we sold spots our landlord would find out, but we still have decided as a household to honor our lease and not use our driveway as a parking lot. The loss of not selling spots was close to $500 each game day weekend for our household. A total of $3500 for the 2014 football season.
Hitting a Deer
In October of 2014 I was driving home from school to see my family one weekend. While driving through a small town in Central Texas I hit a deer at about fifty five miles an hour. The deer was thrown into the air and landed directly on my front windshield, with no damage to the windshield at all. However, I had a previously existing chip in my windshield, in right about the same spot as the deer's impact. I could have easily blamed the damage to my windshield as part of this incident, even though I knew it was not. I did not report it as part of the damage though. I knew that committing insurance fraud in this situation would go undetected, but was still wrong. My windshield still has the chip, and I use it as a daily reminder to make the correct ethical decisions. |