Everyday Ethics

Most people strive toward some measure of personal success.  This can be quantified in a variety of ways, depending upon what sorts of goals are most important to you.  A lesser number of people also strive to live ethical lives, and this too can be variously defined.  Finally, a select few wish to be both ethical and successful.  But it is not always clear that one can accomplish both, making this a question well worth exploring further.

Using the “first thought, best thought” strategy, I am inclined to say that one can be ethical and successful at the same time, though a bit of creative balancing might be in order.  For example, if your idea of success is being someone with unlimited amounts of money, you may have to cut some corners ethically in order to reach this extreme.  However, one can certainly still make a great deal of money while maintaining a high moral standard.  Further, the current business climate actually encourages, rather than discourages, ethical conduct.

Another ideal of a successful life might include some notion of happiness.  In fact, most people value happiness a great deal and would prefer to be happy and poor rather than depressed and wealthy.  Here we find the inverse of our previous example of success as wealth.  While one might have to limit their financial strivings in order to maintain a minimum standard of ethics, one may need to curb their ethical conduct in order to promote personal happiness.

Specifically, there are many possible situations where something might make us very happy, yet not be ethical.  Perhaps it would make me very happy to watch the women’s volleyball team change into their uniforms.  Suppose further that I could do this without their knowledge, so that the only result of such an action would be my enjoyment of watching a group of fit young women change clothes.  This would certainly lead to greater personal happiness, assuming I enjoy this sort of thing, but it wouldn’t be very ethical.

There is no obvious incompatibility between success and ethics.  It is clearly possible to pursue both, and one can reach substantial heights in both realms without either one impinging substantially upon the other.  However, like most things in life, we should be careful to avoid extremes.  By pursuing a balanced lifestyle where both success and morality play a prominent role in our way of being, we are able to enjoy the fruits of both without sacrificing one for the sake of the other.

About the Author

Elijah Weber is a graduate student at Bowling Green State University. He holds a Master's degree in philosophy from Colorado State University, and Bachelor’s degrees in sociology and philosophy from Chapman Univerity. He currently lives in Bowling Green, Ohio with his wife Laura, his newborn son Brandon, and his feline life-partner Monte.