'The Parable of the Sadhu' by Bowen Mccoy: An Analysis of Ethics

Those thought to be ethical or moral are described in terms of their values in regards to honesty, integrity and good character. Our ethical conduct originates from our values which are greatly influenced by our morals; they provide guidance and are our standard for the ways in which we carry out and view right and wrong decisions. For these reasons, personal ethics are said to be our foundation and, as such, often influence how we administer ethical codes of conduct in our personal lives, and the ways in which we carry out our organizational duties. The normative foundations of public service ethics are those standards used to justify and defend one’s conduct, i.e. reasoning about obligations, consequences and ultimate ends in specific situations. In addition to personal codes of conduct, leadership in the public sector requires the ability to apply ethical reasoning based on formal controls and technical standards.

This paper will first discuss briefly what ethics are and provide the definition for an ethical issue. An ethical leadership issue is identified and explained for this author’s practice area. We will then identify and discuss key strategies for leadership that are pertinent to the ethical issue. Next, empirical evidence which supports the strategies discussed will be analyzed. Then, the impact and importance of the strategies will be stated. The final step will be to provide a conclusion to the reader that summarizes the content and strategies.

Ethical leadership is commonly connected with characteristics like fairness and honesty, that can enable a person within an organization to do the right thing. In responding to the lack of attention to the ethical dimensions of positive leadership Brown and colleagues designed a definition for ethical leadership. They would define it as “the demonstration of normatively appropriate conduct through personal actions and interpersonal relationships, and the promotion of such

In the Parable of the Sadhu, Bowen McCoy takes a trip to the Nepal with his friend and anthropologist Stephen to trek through the Himalayan Mountains. One man from New Zealand that was in their group but had gone ahead found an Indian holy man, a sadhu, naked and laying on the ice. He brought the man to McCoy and Stephen, but was determined to reach his goal and he left the sadhu in their care. After taking the sadhu’s pulse giving initial first aid, McCoy decides to leave the sadhu with Stephen and their guide. None of the hikers, other than Stephen, was willing to put their personal goals aside and help the sadhu who was in need of aid. Everyone did what they considered “their part”, but would not claim ultimate

Health care leadership begins with creating an honest environment. The core principles of ethics are beneficence (do good), nonmaleficence (do not harm), autonomy (control by the individual), and justice (fairness) (Flite and Harman 2013). Health care professionals has the responsibility of dealing with complex patient and healthcare system issues. According to, Limentani (1998), a code of ethics can assists with facilitating

Leadership ethics by Lamar Odom that basically examines whether doing the right thing is enough in leadership. The author examines this issue given that the behavior of leaders has been one of the most intriguing issues in today’s society and in order to provide insights on ethics in leadership. The title of the book provokes deeper thoughts in the minds of leaders even before they open the book to commence reading. The author of this book is a leadership and ethic consultant who has not only taught numerous courses but also carried out several trainings on this intriguing topic. Professor Odom developed interest in examining this issue following the cliché answers he received from time to time on the question of what ethics is. Actually, Odom’s work in examining ethics in leadership was fueled by the concerns he had regarding the cliché answers he received from students and corporate executives.

In Jon Krakauer’s Into Thin Air, a Personal Account of the Mt. Everest Disaster, Jon Krakauer explains his encounter with the great Mt. Everest. As a child, Jon Krakauer longed for climbing, yet he never envisioned that this one ascension would be a calamity. Krakauer was doled out by Outside Magazine to write about the business undertakings that were being directed on Mount Everest in May 1996. Jon Krakauer, the storyteller and creator, depicts a direct record of this disastrous voyage. Krakauer, his aide, and a gathering of climbers set out to the highest point of Mt. Everest to perceive how dangerous or safe it was to handle the world's biggest mountain. Lamentably, 1996 was Everest's most exceedingly bad season ever, and Krakauer describes the

The third challenge, Ethics and Effectiveness, Aristotle writes, “ the excellence of man also will be the state which makes man good and which makes him do his work well. He further states, some problems in leadership ethics are the result of a tension between ethics and a leaders desire to be effective, whereas other problems emerge when leaders are morally mistaken or morally incompetent, (Ciulla, Knights, Mabey &Tomkins, 2017,

In “The Parable of the Sadhu” by Bowen McCoy, there is a strong sense of honesty but integrity is lacking. In Stephen Carter’s article he defines integrity as not just simply being honest but doing the morally correct thing. In the parable everyone is giving their honest opinion on what to do with the Sadhu however, none of their opinions involve actually ensuring his safety. McCoy acted with honesty and not integrity. I believe Carter would argue that McCoy and his companions should have taken the proper steps to ensure that the life of the Sadhu would end on the mountain. I feel that if I were in the same position I would have chosen to act with integrity and abandon my mission and make my new to save the Sadhu. I would have chosen

out if the sadhu lived or died. I can attest, though, that the sadhu lives on in his story. He lives in

After reading Bowen H. McCoy’s, “The Parable of the Sadhu,” I ask myself: Can stress or environmental conditions excuse the actions of Bowen McCoy or anyone in a similar situation? Joseph Badaracco says that “right-versus-right choices are best understood as defining moments; decisions that reveal, test, and shape.” There is no doubt in my mind that Bowen McCoy’s encounter with the Sadhu was a defining moment, but by not taking a stand and ultimately making sure of the Sadhu’s survival, will the shadow cast forward by Bowen from his decision be one that he can live with; one that his peers could admire. Or will it be one that he and everyone close to him will see and often worry about. What will happen when another “defining moment”

This broader concept of ethical leadership empowers leaders to incorporate and be explicit about their own values and ethics. The following list provides a framework for developing ethical leadership. It is based on the observations of and conversations with a host of executives and students over the past 25 years, and on readings of both popular and scholarly business literature. Written from the perspective of the leader, these ten facets of ethical leaders offer a way to understand ethical leadership that is more complex and more useful than just a matter of “good character and values.”

Effective leaders lead by example. An ethical behavior shown by a leader can be the best way to lead a team through difficult time in an organization. That’s the case of Dr. Barbara Shaw, head of an important unit within our organization. Ethical theories focuses in two important aspects of a leader; the first one are his or her actions and behavior, while the second element has to do with his or her character. Dr. Shaw has shown two important ethical traits with her behavior that reveals her character and integrity. These two ethical traits are:

Grow up, fall in love, get married, have children; the ideal sequence of family, but what happens when families are brought together and created out of order? In the adolescent novel The First Part Last, by Angela Johnson, she tells an inspiring story of a 16-year-old boy who enters fatherhood too early. Bobby is an African American who sacrifices his own youth to assume the responsibility of raising his daughter, Feather, after his girlfriend and mother of their daughter becomes unresponsive. Challenging decisions are made regarding friends, family, and Feather’s well-being, as well as selfish adolescent desires. Throughout the novel, the readers move with Bobby, encouraging him, while silently reprimanding him for his selfish actions.

Leaders can begin by establishing a systematic approach to ethics so when ethical issues do occur; the organization’s actions to address them match its core values. To do this, leaders should identify and discuss specific ethical challenges, determine how to approach them, and provide practical insights to help maintain and enhance ethical performance.