Values are shaped by our
environments. Our backgrounds,
experiences, and cultures dictate which values we will hold dearest to us. Protected values should be independent of
consequences, insensitive to quantity, and applied to acts (Hoch &
Kunreuther, 2001). Our protected values
will differ, however the strength of their convictions should be equal. If there are values that we hold in deep
belief we should honor them and stay true to their ideas, positions, or notions. My three protected values are freedom,
kindness, and respect.
It is my belief that we should all
be free. Free to think as we want, to
act as we want, and to make our own decisions about how to live our lives. Freedom however can be a double-edged
sword. Was James Holmes free to walk
into that Aurora movie theater and take the lives of those 12 people? Are students free to use social media to bully
their classmates? Should mothers be free
to have the right to refuse their children medical care because it goes against
their religious beliefs? These are all
valid questions. My freedom, the freedom
that I hold steadfastly is different than these examples. To me, the thought of freedom is an inherent
device used as a tool to make the world better.
Steve Jobs was free to imagine and in doing so… he changed the
world. Plato and Socrates were free to
share their knowledge which influenced science, politics, and literature. The actions of the few should not negate the
totality of the good propagated by the masses.
I believe we should be free to
love whoever we want regardless of race, gender, or religious beliefs. Growing up, I never knew anyone that was
openly gay until I was about 20. I
worked with this kid at a restaurant and he was openly gay. Working with him and getting to know him was
one of the greatest learning experiences of my life. It taught me that just because someone is gay
does not make them bad. It doesn’t make
them evil. It just makes them
different. We actually got to be good
friends and would go for drinks together after work. He would tell me the how painful it was for
him growing up gay. How he had to hide
it from everyone and that living a lie was hard. He explained to me how his lifestyle cost him
relationships with his family. He was a
tortured soul. After some time, he
confided in me he was HIV positive. My
heart broke for him. In the late 90’s it
was basically a death sentence. He was always
so upbeat though… Thinking about him brings a smile to my face. He once asked me if I would be willing to give
him a ride to get medicine because no one else knew he had AIDS. I felt honored that he trusted me the way he
did. I think sometimes we forget to
remember that we are all human. We all have
feelings. Freedom in our society has
come at a great price. It was the reason
for our civil war. It was the reason for
so much unrest in the 60’s. We fought
then and we continue to fight today for our freedoms. We should never stop fighting for what we
believe in if those beliefs make the world better and cause no harm to others.
I grew up in a very traditional Hispanic
family. My mother stayed home and did
all of the cooking, cleaning, and laundry.
My father worked and when he got paid he would give my mom his paycheck. She in turn would pay all the bills, buy the
groceries, and make sure we had what we needed.
She would give my dad enough money each week for him to buy cigarettes
and put gas in his car. To this day,
they are still in love, (they get on each others nerves more than anything but
it’s cute) almost 40 years later. What I
learned from them was to be kind. Be
kind to others regardless of whether you think they deserve it or not. I try to live my life by the values my
parents instilled in me. I never have
understood why some people choose to be mean to others. It is very disheartening. I go out of my way to be kind to others. Especially strangers. Why shouldn’t I? Especially when you don’t know someone is
when you should be the kindest. It’s the
first impression they will have of you.
Also you don’t know enough about a stranger to determine whether they
deserve to be treated unkindly so why do it?
I make the conscious decision to be kind to everyone. I love the smile it brings to people’s faces
when just the simplest gesture of kindness makes their day. Every day is a new day and we should strive
to make it better, not only for ourselves but for everyone we encounter. Being kind to others is not a value I’m
willing to make a trade-off on.
At a young age I was taught to
respect my elders. My best friend
growing up was Italian. I was able to
learn just how important in his culture respect was. I loved the fact that I was able to learn in
my childhood from different cultures because it gave me perspective on life. I loved to watch the interaction that older
people had with each other. The way they
spoke to one another, how they greeted one other. I found it fascinating. The lessons that I learned I am trying to
teach my son. We went to an event a few
months back and members of the local fire and police departments were
there. I think it’s great for children
to look up to athletes or to actors but these are the men and women who
actually put their lives on the line day in and day out. I told my son that these people were heroes,
kind of like the ones he knows from his cartoons but only in real life. I want him to have respect for the job these
individuals choose to do. They deserve
it. Just as do his teachers, grandma and
grandpa, and mommy and daddy. I feel
like if more parents were to instill this value the less difficult it would be
to raise good hearted, well-meaning children.
If someone wants to be a great leader, respect is a quality they need to
possess. Williams (2013) wrote “Respect
must play the most important role in any personal or working relationship. One
of our most important statements at our company, Fishbowl, is, ‘I’ve got your
back.’ This single phrase carries all of the Non-Negotiables with it” (para.
4). Respect plays a big role in my
life. I give it to everyone I know just
I do with kindness. I have no right or
authority to be disrespectful to others.
It’s just not how I live my life.
Kindness and respect come to me
as natural protected values. Freedom
became one as I got older. I’ve learned
not to judge others on how they look or who they date. I opened up my mind. It wasn’t always the case but I had some
valuable teaching lessons in my life that have shaped how I perceive
things. I believe strongly in my
convictions. I believe in treating
others right, fairly, and without prejudice.
Being kind and respectful are products of my behavior. In the past I’ve worked for organizations
that didn’t live up to these values and I left.
For me, money is not the number one driving force in my life. Happiness is.
If I can be happy and help other to be happy, I feel I will have served
my purpose in life. I want my peers to
feel that I was respectful and kind. If
that can be my legacy that will be just fine by me.
Hoch, S. J., & Kunreuther, H.
C. (2005). Wharton on making decisions. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley &
Sons Inc.
Williams, D. (2013). Great
Leaders Know Respect Is The Keystone Of A Successful Business. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/davidkwilliams/2013/05/29/great-leaders-know-respect-is-the-keystone-of-a-successful-business/
No comments:
Post a Comment