Anyone Need a Moral Compass?

My Moral Compass

How I will strive to leave the world a better place for future generations

·         I will do no harm.

·         I will accept responsibility for my personal actions and for their consequences.

·         I will take care that my actions do not harm others.

·         I will support the individual's right to self-determination.

·         I will put the truth first.

·         I will not use a person as an involuntary means to an end, even if the end benefits others.

·         I will be honest.

·         I will honour agreements.

 

Why do I need a moral compass?

Society places huge emphasis today on “core ethics”, “basic principals”, “shared values”, “a common moral framework”, blah, blah, blah…but no one seems to want to draw a clear definition of what these core fundamentals are. I’m not talking about broad stroke ethics, campaign promises or corporate mission statements; I’m talking about clear, fundamental principles. If you asked me yesterday what my ethical principles were I, like most people, had no Moral Compass to refer to. It occurred to me that I had better get one before someone accuses me of not having one. It was that thought that prompted me to define my own moral compass.

What is my moral compass?

My moral compass needed to be simple and cover three hundred and sixty degrees of my life, so I decided to design mine around eight points that could be applied as universally as possible. By defining my Moral Compass I can empower myself. By providing me a clear route through society’s increasingly complex ethical dilemmas it will enable me to have the moral courage to stand for what is right. It will do this by applying these consistently defined principles to day to day problems, rather than applying "my best      intentions", which are my preference and not necessarily ethical.

Will I share my Moral Compass?

I am right now, it was shared with me from a number of sources through my research and I feel that it is imperative to share it with others. In today’s global village the sooner we begin to share global values the better. At no other time in history has it been more important to the survival and progress of mankind.  

Mine might not be the best one or the only one but you are welcome to it if you need one.

 

 

Bishop, A. (2005) 'Moral principles defined: a decision-making perspective', Int. J. Management and Decision Making, Vol. 6, Nos. 3/4, pp.326-333.

http://www.vision.org/visionmedia/article.aspx?id=3574

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/moral+compass

http://moralcompass.org/content/view/29/36/