A personal code of ethics may be described as the values that an individual embraces ethically to their daily activities. They may comprise of ethical standards that an individual employs in controlling their performance and behavior in their physical or professional state. According to Howard, Korver & Birchard (2008), ethical codes of ethics include accountability, loyalty, respect, equality, selflessness, transparency, responsibility, and honesty. For an individual to identify their code of ethics, they need to monitor their daily goals, beliefs, and practices. Monitoring these trends and determining the behavioral approach that an individual always uses towards achievement will allow them to identify their code of ethics. In this essay, I provide a detailed statement of my ethics code and indicate its relevance it is to my work ethics.
I consider being honest my initial code of ethics that I employ in my operations. Honesty is described as the moral conduct of that an individual who can be truthful in certain scenarios without contradiction fear. It may also be used to mean the straightforwardness in the line of work of an individual. I always choose to exercise honesty in my dealings and activities because it offers me the opportunity to provide the real picture of an event or a situation. This code of ethics is valuable to me because it enables and encourages me to keep track of my achievements and embrace the outcomes without hiding or whitewashing the bad experiences that I sometimes go through in life. Through honesty, I have managed to achieve many things that I initially thought were impossible.
First, honesty has sharpened and strengthened my relationship with my friends and the people around me at home, school, and place of work. This is evident in the kind of freedom I have with them when I become honest with everything and everyone. I also enjoy a lack of judgment from these people that could make me have crossed thoughts when I am around them. Honesty has relieved me from the burden of trying to fit in everyone’s lives and the community because people find it easy to welcome me into their lives without struggles. I have also gained the trustworthiness of people through honesty. Because I chose to be honest at all levels of my life and with all people, it is easy for them to trust me with their everything. However, honesty also made me experience some drawbacks because I lost some contact with people who feel that being honest is not a great ethical value but a weakness. Despite all these challenges, I still strongly believe that honesty is not a weakness but an important virtue that every individual in the community should try to emulate.
Another code of ethics is respect. I apply this in my daily activities regardless of color, race, ethnicity, age, sex, and social position of an individual. Respect may be described as a deep admiration feeling for something, or somebody elicited achievements, qualities, or abilities. It may also be used to describe the due regard for the rights, wishes, or feelings of other people. I prefer paying respect to all individuals and adhering to their obligations. In my place of work, I gain back respect from my colleagues when I treat them with respect. Lastly, the ethics of respect is important for my life because it has enabled me to achieve a higher level of people’s intimacy because it creates mutual understanding between the people I often interact with and me.
Another code of ethics that I find important and I have always applied in my daily activities is responsibility. Responsibility means having control over something or somebody or having the duty to deal with something or a given situation. This code of ethics makes me accomplish my goals and objectives without the feeling of being burdened. My embrace of responsibility is evident since I handle duties and roles with minimal supervision. I help my parents in doing certain tasks in the house daily without being asked to. I also do my school work and homework in time to perfection. This indicates a higher level of being responsible.
Lastly, being a considerate person is also a code of ethics that I find very important for me as an individual and my life endeavors. Being a considerate individual means having or portraying a moral character of being selfless so that other people may not be harmed or inconvenienced in any way or the other. Being a considerate person is important, and this is evident at home when I ensure that all my siblings have their basic needs first before considering my state. I also ensure that my friends have certain things or comfort they require before I have my own. I find that being a considerate individual is not only important for my well-being but also for the well-being of others in the community. Moreover, it helps me be in the right standing with my friends and family members.
Personal code of ethics and organization ethics
In comparing the personal code of ethics and the organization code of ethics, I think the personal code of ethics is more practically applicable to the organization’s ethics. Corporate ethics refer to the codes of conduct that exist between works in a given organization. These may comprise beneficence which is showing concern for the well-being and the needs of the people, especially the clients (Kaptein & Wempe, 1998). In such scenarios, workers are required to portray ethical codes such as being considerate. Additionally, being that confidentiality is also another organizational ethic that is required when handling clients or customers, there is the practical applicability of the personal code of respect. This implies that a worker is required to show respect to the needs or the requirements of the clients or the customers and also keep clients’ attachments or documents as confidential as much as they can (Verbos et al., 2007). Therefore, I would solidly conclude that it is highly appropriate to apply an individual’s code of ethics in any given organization that they offer their services because it shapes the path for one’s ability to meet the requirements of the people they serve, maintain these people, and be able to fulfill the short and long-term objectives of the organization.
References
Howard, R. A., Korver, C. D., & Birchard, B. (2008). Ethics for the real world: Creating a personal code to guide decisions in work and life. Harvard Business Press
Kaptein, M., & Wempe, J. (1998). Twelve Gordian knots when developing an organizational code of ethics. Journal of business ethics, 17(8), 853-869.
Verbos, A. K., Gerard, J. A., Forshey, P. R., Harding, C. S., & Miller, J. S. (2007). The positive ethical organization: Enacting a living code of ethics and ethical organizational identity. Journal of Business Ethics, 76(1), 17-33.
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