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Consider this quote from Abe Lincoln

"America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves."

The most important question we can ask of ourselves is what do we stand for? On the surface it seems like an easy question but in reality it is one too often overlooked in our lives. Do you have a different answer depending on the situation? Does it make a difference if what you are standing for takes place in your personal life rather than in your professional life? That is a slippery slope for many because they have two different sets of standards.

In our lives we have, from the time we were small children, learned the difference between what was right and what was wrong. As teenagers we learned that winning was the most important thing, and yet later on we may have looked at that in reflection and adjusted that belief because we understood that winning at any cost wasn’t winning at all. As adults we look at the world around us and make decisions and judgments based on our core set of values. Certainly there are times when we adjust our views and soften what once was an undebatable core value. That is part of growing and having compassion when we understand that we are dealing with real people with real feelings.

I would say it would be safe in believing that every single one of us have been in a group or had a job where one set of people was treated differently than others. Those places where the fine line between fair and equal was so grey that one wondered if we really wanted to be there. Unfortunately, we have all had to deal with this and for most of us I would dare say we kept quiet and mumbled our disgust with the situation under our breath or out of ear shot of those in charge. We keep our heads down and move along not standing up for ourselves and hoping at some point karma comes along to right the injustice we feel.

More often than not though, we will spend weeks and months and years frustrated and angry and unable to live up to our fullest potential. What if we had spoken up? Not only for ourselves but for others when we see wrong being done? Oh, I’m not saying that one needs to get pitchforks and rope and take some western justice upon leaders who treat us unfairly or with little or no respect, even if they deserve it, but sometimes one must stand on principals and speak up.

Change can only come when we stand together and speak up, defending ourselves against the evils that invade our every day lives. It is when we stand on principal and always remain steadfast to our core values that we are living the way we should be. Don’t be fooled into thinking that there won’t be repercussions from standing up for what you believe in, because I will guarantee you most of the time it will end up filling your life with drama and sending you in to a brief panic when things spin out of control. But in the end you will be able to look yourself in the mirror and know that you stood for what you believed in, said your peace and maybe in the end gained a little respect, not only from others, but also from yourself.

See you next week…Remember, We’re all in this together.