I had a job interview that came at a crucial time for me, but unfortunately, I was 35 minutes late. The interviewer wasted no time addressing my tardiness.
Interviewer: Do you know that you are late?
Me: Yes.
Interviewer: Why are you late?
Me: I woke up late and skipped taking a shower to ensure I made it here.
To my surprise, the interviewer burst into laughter. The rest of the interview proceeded as usual, and despite not having a perfect match in qualifications, I was offered the job.
At the end of the interview, the interviewer, who later became my boss, expressed admiration for my honest response. He highlighted that I had the opportunity to provide any excuse to deflect responsibility for being late but chose not to do so. He emphasized that leadership positions value honesty over concealing mistakes.
In my case, being transparent and unafraid to admit my errors to a stranger and a potential employer turned out to be a rewarding decision.
Sometimes, being dishonest, or more accurately, politically correct, can be seen as a sign of high intelligence.
Allow me to share a fable: There was once a lion king who loved hearing praises about himself. One day, a duck dentist told him that he had bad breath. Seeking validation, he asked a goat the same question, who honestly confirmed the bad breath.
Enraged by the truth, the lion killed the goat. He then approached a bull and received a false assurance that his breath was fine. In anger at being lied to, the lion killed the bull as well.
Finally, the lion asked a fox the same question. The clever fox, not wanting to be killed, made up a story of not answering his question due to a blocked nose caused by a cold, spared itself from the lion’s wrath. Pretty smart fox!
In conclusion, honesty is not only simple but can also be life-saving when practiced daily. A true story illustrates this point: I am not sure about the source of this story. One Marine Corps officer was late for a meeting, which was unusual since Marines are known for their punctuality and respect for time.
When questioned about the lateness, the officer explained that he had to discharge a Marine candidate from training for falling asleep on watch in the woods of Virginia. The officer emphasized that the candidate denied the accusation until irrefutable evidence was presented, at which point he finally took responsibility.
The officer stated that the rule in their Marine Corps is to take responsibility for one’s actions before performing them, not after being caught. He further explained that he could not place the Marine in a leadership position where the lives of others were at stake. The trust of his subordinates would erode if they doubted the authenticity of his words, causing potential harm.
These stories highlight the importance and value of honesty, not only in personal interactions but also in leadership roles where trust and integrity are paramount.
Let me first tell you this Aesop’s Fable.
Two men were travelling together in a jungle. One Traveller was so honest that he had never spoken a lie in his life. The other Traveller was such a big liar that he had never spoken a truth in his life. Soon they reached to the land of Apes.
The King of the Apes ordered them to be brought in the court. In order to impress them, he sat on a magnificent golden throne and arranged all the subjects on either side. The King of Apes asked the Traveller who never spoke the truth, “What do you think of me as a King?”
The lying Traveller said, “Sir, everyone can see that you are the most noble and mighty King of the world.”
The King was quite pleased and he continued, “And what do you think of my subjects?”
“Sir, Your subjects are all worthy of their great royal master”, said the Traveller.
The Ape was so delighted with his answer that he gave him a very handsome present.
Now the King of Ape asked the honest Traveller, “And what Sir is your opinion?”
The honest Traveller replied, “I think you are a very fine Ape, and all your subjects are fine Apes too.”
The King of the Apes got very angry. He ordered him to be taken away and put to death.
It is a fact that speaking truth requires no intelligence and imagination. Anyone can speak truth. However, it requires intelligence to speak a lie which is beneficial to you, your organization or your country. It is evident from this story that speaking an intelligent lie can save your life while your principled stand on speaking always the truth may cost you even your life.
Let me tell another interesting story from the real life.
Around 1998, I was posted in Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), an agency which collects intelligence and investigate the cases of Customs Frauds in India. In those days, mobile phones had just started. You can buy a prepaid mobile SIM from market without any verification by giving any address. We caught one person carrying smuggled goods, who was a carrier doing the job on the instructions given by the kingpin from his mobile phone.
After his statement, we got the address of the kingpin from the mobile company. However, when we did the address verification, it was found to be fake. We had no further clue to proceed.
One of my colleague, MS, suddenly got a great idea. He called from his phone as an official of the top executive of the mobile company. He told the kingpin that he had won a bumper prize in the lottery drawn on mobile numbers.
However, when the gift was send by courier, it was returned back undelivered. He then requested him, if he can provide the right address so that the prize can be delivered to him. The kingpin was too delighted. He immediately provided his true address on phone and also ensured that he will be available at the address during a specified time. We wasted no time in sending our team to the address to nab the kingpin.
You surely require tremendous intelligence and skill to tell lies.
There is surely some truth in the study.
