Make an Ethical Difference has been getting a lot of PR which of course is all to the good except that it makes it hard to keep this page up to date. One of the topics that focuses the book is why people disagree so much about ethics – and whether it matters. People just have a hard time changing their minds when it comes to ethics. An article on this topic appeared at Yahoo News. I was asked to write something on why truth telling matters, especially for CEOs, for CEO magazine. I always appreciate comments on these pieces, none of which is repetitious of the book, at my personal email address councile@aol.com.
Optimism for Ethics
December 16, 2013 — MarkI recently had the opportunity to speak to a group of students and faculty at Boston University’s Kilichand Honors Program. I have done so many radio programs where the host asks me what is wrong with today’s young people that I wasn’t expecting much. My plan was to cover the main points in Make an Ethical Difference in simplified form. I got a big surprise. The students got very involved in the topic and, to my delight, they showed a level of ethical thinking that is not supposed to exist anymore. They were truly exceptional. The faculty at Kilichand were another pleasant surprise as many were dedicated to integrating ethics in the design of the overall curriculum. I know that this was not a representative sample, but it was a sample and the students and faculty were real! So while we are wringing our hands about today’s kids, please remember that there are some good ones – and some good adults too.
Mark Pastin 