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There are a few ethical big issues, or "ethical no-brainers," which most people agree are clearly morally wrong. Some would include murder, assault, rape, and theft. For most businesses the first three items on this list aren't a problem, but the fourth ethical no-brainer, theft, is. The irony is that while most people consider stealing to be ethically wrong it somehow creeps into our conscience at some level and is an all-too-familiar dilemma for most of us.

Be honest, although you probably have never robbed, raped, and assaulted anyone, the odds are you have stolen something sometime in your life. As a child, maybe you raided the cookie jar or intentionally kept your friend's toy. Later on you may have succumbed to a teenage shoplifting dare or as an adult downloaded Photoshop for "free" from the Internet. Theft, whether big or small, has found us all and to some degree we are all recovering thieves. The urge to get something for nothing seems too difficult to resist.
In getting to the bottom of the problem of stealing, we need to attempt to define it, examine its origins, and look at examples in our modern workplace culture.

" Stealing" is one of those tricky ideas which appears clear-cut in principle but eludes us in practice. Officially, "stealing" is the act of taking something that belongs to somebody else without the owner's permission. Ask a room full of people if theft is wrong and most will say "Yes, but..." and then add their rationalization or circumstance of choice. In trying to pin down the topic, the room full of people will divide into three camps. One group will take a conservative moral absolute position, another will take a liberal definition accepting most reasonable excuses except outright criminal behavior, and the rest will stake out the middle ground.

However, in the context of the workplace the position that really counts the most is the employer's position. With that said, even knowing that your employer expects the strictest definition possible, this still may not inspire the moral fortitude needed to withstand temptation and a host of daily ethical situational dilemmas.

To understand where we are, look at where we've been. Out of all the moral lessons from childhood, odds are you can play back the parental lecture on stealing word-for-word. But the media and the world have been telling you different. We had Robin Hood stealing from the rich and giving to the poor, Yogi stealing "pick-a-nick" baskets to fill his stomach, a daring cat burglar stealing a priceless diamonds from a museum, and so on. Although these conflicting moral lessons didn't necessarily lead you to a life of crime, they did paint a picture without moral absolutes of a world where the act of stealing is merely a matter of personal moral judgment.

Fast forward to today. When asked the question, "Is stealing wrong?" How much of a qualifier goes along with it? It may be very possible for you to accept the definition of stealing in principle but reject it in reality. Have you diverted company products or resources to yourself or others because of need or desperation? Have you "stolen" time from your employer? How many of us would never shoplift a CD but easily download illegal MP3's or pirated software without blinking an eye? The list of something-for-nothing ethical transgressions that subtly fly in under the radar screen of "stealing" can be endless especially if your standard is "What would Yogi do?"

The stakes are high in the workplace. You can't merely rely on your human feelings, the culture, and the situation to guide you. You must rely on principle. The principle is clear: theft of resources and time in any amount is wrong. This principle should be fully embraced to the extent that it is humanly possible. It is what your employer expects from you. It is what other people expect from you. And, despite what you may have been led to believe, it is what our society expects from you.

But before you reject the seemingly impossible task remember that like an alcoholic, you will always be at some sort of recovery stage. Resisting the urge to get something for nothing requires you to know the meaning of the word "theft", clarify your core principles, and draw an ethical line in the sand. Life is full of challenges that move your character forward or send it backwards. There will always be another cookie jar or "pick-a-nick" basket with goodies waiting inside. Rather than settling for a free snack today, choose to earn yourself a feast later.