We are plagued today by a decline in ethical behavior—every day seems to bring a new scandal. But we have the power to make the world a more ethical place. In this book, the leading ethics authority in the country argues that we have an innate ethical sense, and provides tools to strengthen and refine it so that we can avoid crippling blunders, respond more intelligently to ethical issues, and make better leadership and business decisions. Mark Pastin explains why we have come to doubt we have this innate ethical sense and why, if we all have this ability, people disagree about ethical issues. Like any other sense the ethical sense needs to be exercised to fully develop, so he draws on his 35 years of experience to provide a wealth of actual situations showing how the tools in the book can be applied in the real world. One challenge to doing the right thing is that there is often no consensus as to what the right thing is, so the book offers proven strategies for building ethical consensus.
Unlike most other ethics books, this is a practical, how-to guide, not a series of “what do I do if?” questions and answers—the goal is to enable people to make the right call themselves, not tell them what to do. By using the unique tools in this book readers will gain confidence in their innate ethical sense and take actions that will elevate the ethical level of their organizations and society as a whole.