"Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." -- Jesus, the

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Mar 12, 1999 by Jim T. Priest

A local businessman and friend of mine (we'll call him Phil), related a curious story to me the other day.

Phil collects fly fishing equipment and is very knowledgeable about the price of rare fishing rods. Someone approached Phil recently and asked if he would be interested in purchasing an old bamboo fishing rod from a third party.

"The guy who owns it wants $200," said Phil's friend. "Do you want it?" Phil studied the rod carefully and then said, "I don't know how much it's worth, but I think the rod is worth quite a bit more than $200. I'd have to check some books but this rod is probably worth at least $500." His friend replied, "Yeah, well he only wants $200 -- do you want to buy it or not?" Phil nodded. "I do under one condition: Tell your friend I think the rod is worth more than he's asking -- maybe as much as $500. If he still wants to sell it, I'll buy it." Phil's friend talked to the rod owner, who decided he would still sell the rod, but ask a little more for it. He sent back the message to Phil that he'd sell it for $250. So Phil bought it. Later Phil checked the books to see what the rod was worth. The book said $1,600. Now finding someone to pay that much might be a tough assignment, but Phil thinks there are folks out there who would pay the book price. So Phil got a real bargain and a beautiful rod. But he almost lost it. What if the guy who owned the rod decided to investigate a bit more and found out what the rod was really worth before selling it? He would have discovered what Phil did. He probably would have boosted the price up quite a lot -- maybe beyond what Phil was willing to pay. Phil could have lost a "real steal" all because he opened his mouth and gave the seller some information he didn't have to. Phil would have been better off keeping his mouth shut. Or would he? Integrity I wonder why Phil said what he did. He could have been quiet. He could have rationalized. He could have "let the seller beware." But he spoke up out of a desire for honesty in the transaction. He didn't want to steal something from someone. All he wanted was for the seller to appreciate he was underpriced and if the seller wanted to proceed, Phil was willing to buy. I'm not sure what I would have done in the same circumstances. I hope I would have taken Phil's route, but there's a nagging suspicion I would have just lapped up the deal like a thirsty dog over a big water bowl. Especially if it was something I really wanted. What a great deal! Why look a gift horse in the mouth? The answer is found in integrity. It involves being a person who is not just looking out for No. 1. It's being a person who doesn't want to steal something from somebody and goes the extra mile by telling the person on the opposite side of the negotiating table something they don't know and aren't obliged to tell. This kind of honesty may not be appropriate in every circumstance. It may be that a lawyer must maintain a confidence for a client and cannot reveal certain private information. Or a real estate agent may not be able to divulge, "Oh, your house is too cheap. My buyer would pay twice as much for your house." But when our own gain is involved, maybe we can strive to follow the model of my fisherman friend. Perhaps we can do unto others as we would have them do unto us rather than doing unto them before they do unto us. Wouldn't that be a revolutionary business principle? Putting others' concerns ahead of your own? First thing you know, the business world might become a friendlier place. We couldn't have that, could we? Or could we? Jim T. Priest, a trial lawyer and partner in the Oklahoma City/Tulsa law firm of McKinney & Stringer, welcomes your comments and questions. You may reach him via e-mail at priestj