Have you ever seen the NBC show My Name is Earl? It’s pretty funny and the concept is very interesting. If you haven’t, I’ll give you a brief explanation. Earl, the protagonist of the show, used to live a very jaded life. He had committed all sorts of crimes (typically robbery) and had done all sorts of bad things to people. At one point he gets a winning lottery ticket, worth $100,000, but loses it when he is hit by a car. While in the hospital, he hears of the concept of karma and decides that he lost the ticket because of all the bad things he’s done in his life.

So, Earl starts a list of atonements he must make, starting from childhood, and, as he begins to remedy his bad deeds, his karma turns around and the winning lottery ticket is returned to him. He continues to live out of a hotel and by small means, so that he can use his new money to help cross things off his list. Thus, the entire series centers around him making things up to people he hurt in the past.

Though I don’t necessarily believe in “Karma,” per say, I do strongly believe that what goes around comes around. If you are an untrustworthy cheat in your daily life or business practices, while you may see wealth and success for awhile, I believe that you will eventually loose everything you gained through deceitful means.

And, on the other side of the coin, if you are honest and giving in your life and business practices, then you will flourish in return. A great example, as I mentioned in a post earlier this year (Teaching Your Child About Money), are the Rockefellers. Many know that the Rockefellers are an extremely wealthy family and have been for generations. What most don’t realize is that from John D. Rockefeller on down, the family members have always been predominately givers. John Rockefeller gave over half of his $1 billion fortune during his lifetime, and the tradition continues through the generations. The family teaches their children from a young age to always give to charities, etc. They believe that is the key to their family’s success.

You may be thinking that it is all well and good to be honest with your family and friends, but the business world is a hard nut to crack and sometimes you have to be someone deceitful to make your way. I don’t agree. In fact, I believe that the most successful businesses in the long run are those that place morality and ethical values as a top priority in business practices.

As I said before, those who are deceitful and dishonest in the way they practice business get theirs in the end. Often, though it may take time, someone discovers their trickery and they eventually begin to lose business and networking connections, leading to the inevitable downfall of their company.

Though it may take longer for a business that plays by the rules to really get on top, I believe that it’s worth the extra effort. Your clientèle will recognize the integrity of your business and will know they can trust you. Business associates, your network, your suppliers and buddy businesses will prefer to work with you over the next guy because they know you’re honest and reliable.

So chose the honest, generous road for your life and your business. No one said it would be easy, but it’s more than worth it because, remember, what goes around comes around.

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