— To follow is a bullet of wisdom on leadership. It comes from Tom’s rifle, named Shot, who has seen it all. You’ll get the drift by clicking Blog in the menu at www.tomnewhouse.com. —
OH, TO BE SQUARE. Rudy wanted to be square with others. He wanted to be honest, and he wanted to have everything settled. Honesty: Tell it like it is, not how you want it to be. That’s being square. Having no debts and, better, having paid fairly. That’s square too. I was proud of my marksman. He was a square fellow.
If only leaders were square: Honest and everything settled. That’s not the trend. Instead it’s popular to brag about how one pulled something over on someone else. Well, you might get some admiring chuckles from equally deceptive “friends,” but you won’t develop a reputation for business dealings. A good reputation includes being square with others. Think square as in carpentry: It all lines up.