“I had always heard the merchants say that truth was not possible in business. I did not think so then, nor do I now. Even today there are merchant friends who contend that truth is inconsistent with business. Business, they say, is a very practical affair, and truth a matter of religion; and they argue that practical affairs are one thing, while religion is quite another. Pure truth, they hold, is out of the question in business; one can speak it only as far as is suitable.”
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The claim that commerce forces you to lie is a convenient excuse, not a law of nature. Keeping your word on quality, price, and promises may cost a sale here and there, but trading honestly is entirely possible, and the reputation it builds usually outlasts whatever a quick deception buys.
When to use it
- A used-car dealer who discloses a vehicle's real repair history even when hiding it would close the sale faster.
- A contractor who quotes the honest cost of a renovation instead of lowballing and padding the bill later.
- A shopkeeper who admits a product is outside her specialty and points the customer somewhere better.