Do the right thing.  It will gratify some people and astonish the rest! –Mark Twain

Last Monday started off great.  I had an early morning meeting in a beautiful, mahogany conference room in downtown Washington, DC.  And after wrapping up some business and shaking hands, I stood up from the leather chair and headed toward the door.  But after a single step, I knew something was wrong.

I turned around and there was a trail of chewed gum cascading from my pants to the chair. (What the….?) Who leaves chewed gum in conference room?  I felt like I was back in second grade.

As far as I knew, there was no antidote for the spiderweb of Juicy Fruit mashed into my pant leg.  I had to deal with the reality that my suit was ruined.  On the way out of the building, I briefly stopped at the first floor cafe to grab some napkins and stem the damage.

As I picked at the gum, which was now caked in from my shin to my shoe, the owner of the Ahra Cafe, Ken Lee, approached me.

“I can help”, he said with a smile.

He asked his wife, Michelle, to grab something from behind the counter.  She emerged with two-sided tape, a spray bottle and a rag.  Then he spent the next ten minutes feverishly attacking the problem.  The gum was no match for Ken Lee!  By the time he finished, my suit was as good as new.

I couldn’t believe he took the time to help me without expecting anything in return.  It turned my day around.  I asked him why he did it.  His answer was as simple as it was beautiful.

“It is right thing to do!”

Thank you, brother!  It doesn’t have to be more complicated than that!

In our professional and personal lives, we need to do the right thing.  It’s not always easy.  But the little choices we make can make a huge difference.

It’s About Winning the Right Way

In our work lives, we have to make money, we have to take care of our families, we have to win.  But it’s not always about securing am immediate and direct benefit.  Sometimes, we have to help a sale along for the good of the company without the expectation of getting paid.  Sometimes, we have to help a colleague in need without gaining recognition. Sometimes, we have to let our employees take the credit in order to build confidence in the broader team.  Sometimes,  we have to put in the work after practice to help a struggling teammate focus.  It’s not just about winning.  It’s about winning the right way.  It’s about elevating others around us.  It’s about doing the right thing.

Doing the right thing might not generate immediate personal results, but the long-term benefits are priceless.  It builds character and garners lasting trust from our colleagues.  It gives us the confidence to keep grinding away.  It allows us to sleep at night.   And we will need every bit of that energy and clear conscience when the tide turns against us.  Doing the right thing stores up our resilience for the future battles on the horizon.

It’s Not About What We Get in Return

And doing the right thing in our personal lives is even more critical.  Is there anything we wouldn’t do for our children?  Is there anything we wouldn’t do to maintain a harmonious home life?  Is there anything we wouldn’t do to strengthen the bonds of our golden friendships? Why risk it over spite?  Why engage in dishonesty?  Why take anything for granted?

Sometimes doing the right thing means owning up to our shortcomings.  Sometimes, it means holding our tongue.  Sometimes, it means allowing our loved ones to shine while we proudly linger in the background.  Sometimes it means going out of our way to lend a hand with no expectation of benefit in return.  

We Need to Make Our Corner of the World a Little Better

Ken Lee didn’t have to help me.  The ten minutes he spent didn’t increase his sales or benefit his other customers.  There was no immediate return on his investment of time.  But he saw someone struggling.  He saw someone having a bad day.  And he wanted to help.  And that is how we make our corner of the world just a little bit better.

Life is full of choices.  How do e spend our time?   How do we conduct ourselves in business?  How do we build relationships?  How do we keep our family together?  There are no easy answers.  But these choices matter.  Little decisions add up over time.  We don’t need to overthink it.

We just need to listen to our inner voice and keep doing the right thing.