Most people confuse wishing and wanting with pursuing. You must place your trust in action.

Trust is the glue that holds relationships together.

You carve out the organization's character through your daily choices. You shape its conscience as you exercise your own.

When you see people with "the right stuff," those who choose the right over the wrong or the "iffy," let them know you're proud of them. Encourage the courageous, so they'll have the will to carry on.

The only way we can develop muscle is through regular exercise. As soon as we stop stretching and working toward higher ethics, our standards start to sag. The muscle gets soft, and instead of excellence we have to settle for mediocrity. Maybe something even worse.

We can't win the struggle for high standards if we just talk a good game . . . we've got to play a good game.

Your ethical muscle grows stronger every time you choose right over wrong.