Respect: Treat People as They Should Be Treated
Many people know what the words loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage mean, but how often do you see someone actually live up to them? The below was adapted from the seven core values for the U.S. Army; however, these values can be applicable in any facet of life, at work, at home, and in your community.
Loyalty
Bear true faith and allegiance. Bearing true faith and allegiance is a matter of believing in and devoting yourself to something or someone. Support leadership and stand up for fellow peers. By doing your share to help others, you show your loyalty to your community.
Duty
Fulfill your obligations. Doing your duty means more than carrying out your assigned tasks. Duty means being able to accomplish tasks as part of a team. The work of any organization is a complex combination of objectives, tasks, and responsibilities—all in constant motion. Work usually entails building one assignment onto another. You fulfill your obligations every time you resist the temptation to take "shortcuts" that might undermine the integrity of the final product.
Respect
Treat people as they should be treated. The U.S. Soldier's Code pledges, "Treat others with dignity and respect while expecting others to do the same." Respect is what allows people to appreciate the best in each other. Respect is trusting that all people have done their jobs and fulfilled their duty. Self-respect is a vital ingredient with the value of respect, which results from knowing you have put forth your best effort. Everyone is on the same team, and each person has something to contribute.
Selfless Service
Put the welfare of the nation and others before your own. Selfless service is larger than just one person; you are doing your duty loyally without thought of recognition or gain. The basic building block of selfless service is the commitment of each team member to go a little further, endure a little longer, and look a little closer to see how he or she can add to the effort.
Honor
Make honor a matter of daily living—develop the habit of being honorable, and solidify that habit with every value choice you make. Honor is a matter of carrying out, acting, and living the values of respect, duty, loyalty, selfless service, integrity, and personal courage in everything you do.
Integrity
Do what's right, legally and morally. Integrity is a quality you develop by adhering to moral principles. It requires that you do and say nothing that deceives others. As your integrity grows, so does the trust others place in you. The more choices you make based on integrity, the more this highly prized value will affect your relationships with family and friends, colleagues and client, and finally, the fundamental acceptance of yourself.
Personal Courage
Face fear, danger, or adversity (physical or moral). Physical courage is a matter of enduring physical duress and at times risking personal safety. Personal courage is facing moral fear or adversity, which may be a long, slow process of continuing forward on the right path, especially if taking those actions is not popular with others. You can build your personal courage by daily standing up for and acting upon the things that you know are honorable.
U.S. Army. (n.d.). Adapted from The Army values (B. Schuette, Ed.). Retrieved June 24, 2024, from https://www.army.mil