If there is one thing we should impart in our schools, it is that few things in life are more gratifying than the pursuit of truth and the practice of virtue. Most people long to be right and do right, and given the right nourishment and encouragement, can accomplish both with ease and grace.
The same could be said for our businesses. Businesses can provide a dynamic setting in which people may pursue truth and practice virtue, all the while delivering products and services which make the world a better place.
The world would be a different place in short order were this simple idea to be driven home in the classroom and the boardroom.
Gregory Hake 
I think that even though people naturally feel that this should be the way of things, they move away from it in our institutions because in the past the biggest examples have really turned out to be hypocritical, where appearance of truth and virtue are most important and the reality turns out to have a rotten center.
This is not at all the way it has to be or should be. Truth and virtue are possible in a balanced way, but they have to grow naturally from within the person and within the organization, and they cannot be slapped on the outside of a sub-par container.
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Yes, and this is quite a difference also from rallying against displays of behaviors that lack these qualities. Giving voice to virtue and living ethically keeps you sane in a conflicted world. Schools, homes and businesses that encourage these basic attitudes are places that foster integrity along with a healthy pressure to be all that you can be.
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I agree wholeheartedly Gregg. I guess that it starts with each one of us doesn’t it!
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Hi Gregg – I enjoyed your thoughts very much. This post had me scratching my head wondering, well, if we aren’t doing this then what are we doing? You have summed up perfectly the essence of what should be the purpose of any endeavor for ourselves and our children.
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Truth and virtue do create a firm foundation, but in today’s world there needs to be a teacher or manager present to assist with the navigation that is necessary to let those be the primary motivation. In both cases the end has justified the means with the result that truth is often obscured or obliterated and a low bar set for the quality of virtue. The measurement of success in both arenas, their standards, are initially skewed by placing resultant profit or scores as the end all be all. These are both excellent places to initiate lasting change for our world.
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Of all of the things I was ever taught, these two qualities are the most influential and important in my life today. No matter where your life leads you, if these are at the core of what you do, you will know purpose and fulfillment.
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