18-24 January 2016

Sincerity – Characteristic/Virtue of the Week

Building Ethical Foundations Weekly newsletter

The purpose of a weekly newsletter is to help you discover the best within you – and for you to see the gifts that other people have and inspire each other to build a kinder, safer world – just by being mindful of a weekly characterstic/virtue and striving to practice it.

Please feel free to share and raise the global consciousness by participating in making the world a better place than you found it.

Sincerity – what is this card saying to you?

Acceptance comes to mind when I read this card – acceptance of self and others. Which also leads to peace, unity & contentment. Being sincere takes courage sometimes as when I read this card I realised that there are so many people that might feel they are not ‘enough’ and they need to impress others by being who others think they should be – this starts at school and continues into our adult working life.

This can lead us into trouble if we make a choice at some stage to ‘impress’ others by fitting in and doing something we don’t feel truly comfortable with – at some stage of our lives we will have all one this while we continue to grow and develop ourselves into who we want to be.

How to practice Sincerity:

For young adults & adults:

• Become aware of the reason you do things – are you giving without expecting anything in return?
• Say what you mean and mean what you say – with honesty and tactfulness – be kind.
• Think about whether you are doing things in order to impress others.

For child care centres & schools:

• Read a story about sincerity and discuss the moral of the story with them.
• Have a discussion about what differences there are in the child care centre or school and the positives gifts they bring as a result.
• Teach children the importance of being accepting – and respectful – of each others differences.

For families:

• Be honest with each other – while also being tactful and kind. Be sincere in what you say.
• Talk about the importance of going by ‘feel’ – you can feel if someone is sincere.
• Have discussions (including disagreements) until everyone comes to a common understanding – or at least a common respect.

For businesses and organisations:

• Be mindful that staff are only open and sincere when they feel management are also.
• Meetings are much more efficient and effective when people are open, honest and sincere – focus on the common purpose of the meeting.
• Be aware of being open & transparent to all – be transparently truthful.