We’ve all probably heard or read the cliche, “honesty is the best policy.” It’s something instilled in us at a young age. It means to tell the truth, but what does that mean? How can we apply this to our lives?
An important first step in thinking about honesty is realizing and appreciating honesty in others. Your friends, parents, and fellow humans face the choice of being honest every day, and that decision of “keeping it real” should be valued.
Sincerity is a powerful tool people use to build relationships. It shows they are trying to put effort into their relationship with you. They want to be authentic and they are sharing that with you. We should be authentic back.
Human connection. It makes life worth living. We look forward to seeing our friends and family every day. We might not always think about honesty—it’s more of a subconscious choice we make.
People rely on us, to be honest with them. It builds trust. Trust is what makes our interactions with other humans so special, which makes honesty with them so important. Breaking that trust can lead to poor or dissolved relationships.
Honesty is something that I have struggled with. I have often thought it would be easier to lie or embellish the truth. But I have realized this is not the easiest thing to do in retrospect. At the moment, it might solve the problem, but what happens when the lie gets discovered? What happens if they call me out? What happens if they believe me; now, I must keep up the lie? If I had told in the first place, it might have been awkward, but it avoids many problems. At the very least, the person can be happy you told them the truth. Honesty builds trust whether you see it or not. Being honest to others is the first step to building and keeping relationships because without relationships with our fellow humans, who are we?
Honesty with others is super important, but there is another side to that coin. Honesty goes both ways, and being honest with ourselves is just as important. Being honest with ourselves puts higher importance on how we think about ourselves than what others think about us. It does not let others dictate how we dress, act, and live our lives. All of this is who we are, and nobody should be able to change that—seriously.
Someone once told me if you stop caring about what people think about you, your life is much happier. To be honest with yourself makes life so much easier and less complicated. It truly shows the beauty in life and makes one more confident.
I had to be honest with myself and take this to heart. Being dishonest took a toll on me. I dictated my life around what I thought would make me “cool.” When I started just being me, I was happy with who I was.
Honesty can be a tricky thing. That’s perfectly okay if we realize the value and importance of it. The sincerity and realness of our honesty make it such a powerful thing. Honesty is what makes or breaks relationships with our fellow humans and shows us who we really are. As James E. Faust once said, “Honesty is more than not lying. It is truth-telling, truth speaking, truth living, and truth loving.”
Jackson Redder is a senior at Cheney High School (CHS) and is very involved in his school and community. Jackson has been an officer in CHS High School Health Helpers (a division of the community coalition) since 2019. He enjoys making others happy and ensures his fellow students have a voice in their school. He enjoys Marvel and “The Office” along with spike ball and ultimate with his friends in his free time.
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