Paying a Price for Doing the Right Thing
Know what it entails, how to reframe your thinking and follow concise advisory
Most people have heard at one point or another, “There are consequences for your actions,” meaning poor decisions are likely to bring unwanted blowback. It is unlikely however that most of us have also heard that, “Just because you do the right thing doesn’t mean you don’t pay a price."
Doubtful as well that many have additionally heard, "Do the right thing but be prepared to pay the price.”
A recent, brief video clip on social media shared a story tied to those messages.
Maybe we did learn those lessons as children or came to the sobering reality as adults yet it can be reasonably argued that nowhere near the majority has heard, trusted or experienced it.
“We rarely hear about the real cost of doing the right thing, because frankly, we adore idealistic simplicity: the ‘good things happen to good people’ narrative,” points out Peter Murphy Lewis, founder and CEO at Strategic Pete, a strategic-and-tailored marketing firm.
“As children, we were taught that doing the right thing will always have a good result, and in an ideal world, that is how it should be. But life is messier than that.”
What that messiness is usually takes learning the ways of the world.
“Being on the ‘right’ side may stir the pot, jostle the status quo or make the powers-that-be uncomfortable,” Lewis says. “And so, we grow up with a strong expectation that righteousness gets an automatic reward, as in cosmic brownie points. The price more often than not comes in resistance, lost opportunities or even personal sacrifices.”
People are not expecting it.
“It's an inconvenient fact that most of us are just not taught to embrace,” Lewis says, adding that we often instead go about “avoiding the discomfort that often comes along with making moral decisions.”
It may not emotionally, psychologically or practically appear easy to do the “right” thing despite the risks, whether they be surprising or high. To move forward knowing what negative could happen is challenging yet not impossible.
“It is the acceptance of the discomfort as part of the equation, not something to fear or avoid,” Lewis suggests. “Once you accept that the cost of doing the right thing will not be avoided, you begin to prepare for it, much the way you would prepare for a storm.
“You know it's coming, so you're bracing yourself, formulating a plan, moving intentionally forward.”
He offers how he views it.
“For me, it's about shifting from the sacrifice to the impact,” Lewis explains.
“This discomfort becomes easier to navigate when I look at the bigger picture — the people I'm helping, the values I'm standing for. The pain becomes worth it,” he says.
“That doesn't mean it's easy, or that you won't face doubts but if you expect there to be a price, you won't be caught off guard. You'll be ready to weather the storm.”
Doing the right thing can not only bring pain, it can be dangerous to those around us, making decision making even more difficult. Planning will increase the probability of operating on a smarter level.
Developing a strategy beforehand that can prove itself reliable for assessing problems and knowing how to prevent or mitigate them while moving forward becomes an important task.
“The first step is clarity,” Lewis says. “Ask yourself: ‘What exactly am I trying to accomplish, and why?’ Understand the ‘why’ so well that when the ‘price’ starts to show up, you can stay rooted in your mission.
“The next step is risk assessment: ‘What exactly is the price I’ll pay? Is it personal? Professional? Emotional? Financial? And is the potential cost worth the payoff, not just for you, but for others?’
“The third step is preparedness. Are you ready to handle the consequences, whatever they may be?,” Lewis says. “This means getting comfortable with discomfort and making peace with the fact that sometimes, doing the right thing means you lose something in the process.
“Lastly, check your support system. Do you have people who will back you up or help you navigate the fallout? If you're facing a difficult decision alone, that’s a red flag,” he warns. “Having a network of support, even if it’s just one trusted friend or mentor, makes a world of difference.”
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