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When I was growing up, people used to talk about an "honest day's work." I don't hear that so much anymore. It's not that there aren't any people out there who are honest in their business dealings, it's just that it seems as though this is not a trait looked on so admiringly these days.

I have noticed over the past several years that people seem to feel that the accumulation of money and possessions is the "be all and end all" of existence. It's the whole "the one who dies with the most toys wins" syndrome. And people even act as though the only thing someone crooked did wrong was to get caught. So it's no wonder, in times like these, with those attitudes prevailing, that we end up with people like the Enron executives, AIG officials, and Bernie Madoff and his ilk.

While I've never been a proponent of the Protestant work ethic, I do see the value in an honest day's work. To me, the operative word in that phrase is "honest".

It may be cliché these days, but honesty is the best policy. When you are honest about your dealings, whether they are business or personal, you don't have to cover your tracks, you don't have to "remember your story" and you don't have to worry that someone will catch you in a lie. When you stick with honesty, even your mistakes can be forgiven because they are "honest mistakes."

Bernie Madoff started out with just a small, simple shell game. He may not have originally intended for it to go as far as it did. But he dug himself a hole by starting off with a lie. By the time it was all over almost 20 years later, he had bilked money from so many organizations and hurt so many people that people cannot find it in their hearts to forgive him. Had he begun his business in an honest fashion, honestly investing people's money, he would not have fallen so far so fast. Had he stuck with honesty, he would not be digging himself out of a dishonorable hole right now.

So why do people cheat? I have never quite been able to figure this out. I think people are looking for a short cut to success. I think they think it'll be easier to get by financially if they take the quick way to gaining money. But I have to say, it seems to me to be so much harder to cheat. You have to make sure nobody catches on. You have to make sure nobody is watching you. You have to keep two sets of books or lie to investors or remember the story you told so that you can tell the same story to others (because if they compare notes and the stories don't match, your whole house of cards can collapse).

For my money (little as it may be), I'd rather live my life in a brick house than a glass house. I'd rather do an "honest day's work" than a dishonest day's work. Honesty isn't just the way to go because God said so. Honesty is the best way to live your life because you never have to look over your shoulder, waiting for your deceit to catch up to you. Dishonesty is exhausting. Honesty helps you deal with other human beings. Trust is important. Once you lose someone's trust it is extremely difficult to regain it.

One of the things I've learned in life is that there are no short cuts, not for anything meaningful. In order to thrive in this world you need a good foundation of learning and morality. With that foundation, you can build a strong house.