About this quote

Cutting corners on your ethics to hit a deadline or save money always backfires on your character. It is easy to convince yourself that a small lie is necessary when the pressure is on. But is a temporary fix worth losing your self-respect? Once you choose the easy wrong over the hard right, you set a new, lower standard for yourself. You have to live with your choices long after the immediate crisis passes.

When to use it

• My boss pressured me to alter the safety testing data so we could launch on time. I remembered this and refused, because saving the schedule is no excuse for putting users at risk.
• My brother wanted to hide the leaky basement when selling his house to get a higher offer. I told him that getting extra cash doesn't make lying okay.
• During the championship game, our coach suggested we fake an injury to stop the clock. We chose to play fair and accept the clock running out instead.