Old School Virtues of Honesty and Hard Work. In 2022.

The New Normal, Generation Z, Millennials, Internet Age, etc. are the terms that are used to define the generations that are in control today. Everything is on the fast lane. Earnings, entertainment, transportation, reading, writing, food, communications and much more. The clarity of thought of this generation is amazing. But as all rules have exceptions, it is the centuries old morals of honesty and hard work that seem to be causing a bit of confusion. The two morals, which have been taught at the very beginning of our lives, clearly have different meanings now. Are honesty and hard work the old school now?

The earlier generation was told that trust can be won by honesty! There was a huge premium on honesty in both product and job markets. Fellows with honesty, as defined by the other guy, is preferred over the fellows who did not seem to have. Morals like God fearing, truthful, loyal, etc. and a few others were presumed in a person with Honesty.

Today, some don’t even consider Honesty as a virtue. In the world, that primarily considers oneself as the center of the universe, Honesty has taken altogether a different connotation. There seems nothing wrong in thinking about self before others. Though it may conflict with global warming and sustainability.

Most of us go for honesty because we want to believe in ourselves and have others believe in us. But when push comes to shove, hard-headed businessmen usually ignore (or fudge) their calculations in order to keep their word. Why believe in honesty if it doesn’t pay?

Power can replace honesty. And power, currently, is with the moneyed guy. So when one has lots of money (power). One doesn’t really need honesty in life is the belief currently.

Hard work, as a virtue, is somewhat in similar predicament. These days, ‘work smart’ seems to be the credo. Those rags-to-riches stories and the unicorns must have chased a good idea. Hard work is executing that idea on ground. ?Generally visible are the unicorn leaders in their corner office and their billions. The entire generation does not care much about the toil put in by promoters in getting there. I have a friend, a PE fellow, who has had a very profitable exit from one of the invested companies through an IPO recently. This guy stood for weeks at the kirana shop watching how the consumers behave while shopping. For weeks on end, the guy with a corner cabin and lakhs in take-home income waits at the Kirana shop for the housewife to complete her groceries shopping! Interpreting the insights during exiting is great. This is hard work done smartly. ?

Both honesty and hard work can never go out of fashion. It can mean different things to different generations though. Happy new year!

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Sushil Bahal is Managing Director of Raka Reputation Management Services Pvt. Ltd., a 20-year old, Mumbai based PR and Advertising company offering integrated communication solutions and maximum reach across 83 top media regions across India. Raka Reputation has experience across sectors, particularly Banking, Financial Services, Healthcare, Hospitality, Education, Lifestyle, Manufacturing, Technology, etc. Raka Reputation has been associated as a communications partner to some of the most complex challenges and nearly 250 IPOs.

Please visit our websites?www.rakareputation.com?or?www.rakapronline.com?for any further information.?Sushil can be contacted on?[email protected].