Ethics and Values Impacs Career Success

Ethics and Values Impact on Career Success

Each individual defines career success in different ways. Being successful closely relates to the person that they are and in part is established by personal ethics and values. These personal ethics and values are made visible because individuals live them through their actions every day of their life. The following will discuss personal values and ethics and the impact they have on an individual's career success. The information included will also define ethics and values as well as provide a brief overview of examples of the situations that aide in molding them as well as situations that arise and reflect them.

Ethics are considered an individual's moral principle and in essence are how individuals perceive right and wrong. Values are the individual's standards of behavior that serve as a guide for individual behaviors. Ethics and values define help each person and they help by serving as a guide in situations and decision making. There are many different styles of values and ethics in life ranging from organizational, professional, religious to cultural of which influence choices individuals make. "Everyday decisions have some basis in values" (Urbany, 2008), but to what extent and which ethics influence those decisions are unique to any given individual.

The way individuals work correlates to the personal values and ethics that were instilled in them throughout their lifetime through various means. Many people find their jobs and work atmosphere successful when their personal ethics and values closely relate to those provided by their company, their position, and their co-workers. They then find their positions and careers satisfying, fulfilling, and meaningful which leads to a feeling of an overall successful career. Everyday decisions made in the work environment are a reflection of values and ethics, as Urbany, Reynolds and Phillips state in their article "How to Make Values Count in Everyday Decisions," that even the mundane decision to get up from your desk to get a cup of coffee is a reflection of professional values and ethics.

To achieve career success, an individual needs to establish a feeling of acceptance to be comfortable in their work environment. This setting will allow someone to incorporate personal values and ethical beliefs. Not being able to be true to personal beliefs in a work situation, will lead to individual stress and strain and possibly feelings of unhappiness and failure. Passion plays a role in all lives; it is often a driving force. This passion is driven by their ethics and values and is often enthusiastic and displays a passion, both, in their work and personal lives. By carrying out this passion in their careers, they are able to be "who they really are" and can therefore be successful. For example, many politicians are extremely passionate and