Elbert Hubbard once said, “An ounce of loyalty is worth a pound of discretion.”
The idea being that if loyalty is a part of your professional life, discretion naturally follows. Loyalty, one of our Army values, is often challenged but not in the way we usually think. There isn’t usually some creepy dude out there with a Russian accent offering us lunch money for the nations secrets – actually, our loyalty is generally tested by humor. Are we wiling to poke fun at someone just be be liked? Are we willing to throw the boss/plan/mission under the bus in front of others so that they will approve?
Are we willing to be loyal to the absent?
Proverbs puts it this way, “A man of many companions may come to ruins, but there is a friend what sticks closer than a brother.” Find that friend. Find that one that will be loyal.
Dr. Seuss nailed it:
I meant what I said
And I said what I meant –
An elephant’s faithful
One hundred percent!
Jonathan R. Fisher 