Transparency for me is the basis for trust in doing business with other people.
Going back, one of the ladies I had that talk with, asked me about my thoughts on the matter because I was very firm on it, making a statement that it’s really important. And today, I’ll share with you the things that I’ve shared with them – where after the end of the long discussion they got new perspectives.
I’ll begin by giving you a scenario.
“Let’s say, you lied to your friend John, but here comes Marie who knows the truth, and one day, you discovered that John and Marie are friends What are you gonna do? Will you tell the truth to John or pretend like nothing’s wrong at all?”
That’s entirely up to you – but to tell you something, regardless of the act that you take, you cannot reverse the damage that you’ve done with the lying, you’ve already tarnished your reputation, and with that reputation, how can people know if they can trust you?
The scenario may be simple, but we know how common it is.
Aside from reputation being tarnished, what can it do to you internally?
You’ll be anxious and you’ll always overthink it. You’ll have to be very extra cautious and you’re always scared of something, especially the truth spilling out.
All that are very stressful and we know what too much stress does to our bodies, so it’s not wise to lie from the very beginning.
THE AMOUNT OF ENERGY IT TAKES
All these things also take a lot of energy just to keep track of things.
One lie leads to more lies, and it will just never be over.
Let me share my personal experience about the matter.
When I was new with my business, I got help from various associations from the upstart and got into a co-op with a lady nurse.
Everything was great! Or at least, looked great on the surface as she had a great business model that we used – except that she had a hidden agenda.
She was never transparent in the beginning as my business partner. She put everything in her name and was just telling me that it was ours, but then I was too blue-eyed to question it.
People around me started questioning some of the things we were doing so I had a hunch that something more was happening. I then confronted her but all I got were additional lies I failed to notice as lies so we continued…
Until I asked the wrong question, or actually, the RIGHT ONE that made her shield crack and blew up on me, even uttered things like I do not know anything about healthcare.
Me? Who’s been a Doctor for decades???? Knows nothing about healthcare??? Pretty sure that’s her way to gaslight in her effort to escape the questions I asked.
Then the 3-month hell started, til I got help from my lawyers to put the company in bankruptcy. We both lost a lot of money and it took me a year of hard work as a Doctor to be able to recover.
THE LESSON
Be aware of what you sign up for, and ask the right questions. Transparency is a MUST.
TRANSPARENCY AND SUCCESS CORRELATION
How does transparency help in business success?
Well, aside from the fact that you’ll be closer to achieving success if you are less stressed…
Imagine running a business without transparency. You can be great at what you do, but the company’s success will never be long-term without it.
Remember, it only takes a single wronged person for a business to fall.
WHAT TO DO WHEN BEING TRANSPARENT IS NOT AN OPTION
Having worked in healthcare as a Doctor for many years… I know that there are just unexpected situations where being completely transparent is hard so I know that it’s not always easy.
It was always a thin line to walk for me. I mean, how do you easily tell your patients about things that you know could really hurt them and their families?
But of course, at the same time, I know better – than holding it off, covering it up, postponing it, or worse, lying about it would just make things worse.
“So you shrug it off, the possibility of hurting them?”
No. But I always search for the best words to tell them. I tell the truth and nothing but the complete truth, but I kind of wrap my words in a nice package so it doesn’t hit them so hard. If possible.
BUSINESS TRANSPARENCY
Transparency in business means offering a clear, honest assessment of what’s going on within one’s work and starts with a simple shift in communication: openness and honesty between everyone involved in the business relationship.
It is also the basis for trust between a firm and its investors, customers, partners, and employees, having its core objective to be always the same: establishing trust and goodwill.
Let’s look at Some examples of what transparency in business can include:
With Investors and Shareholders – Investors think about transparency in terms of how readily they can access financial information about a company, including its price levels and audited financial reports. Investors must be able to trust that your organization produces financial reports that are informative, accurate, and independently audited.
With Customers – Customers want to see transparency from the businesses where they choose to spend their money. To achieve transparency with its customers, businesses should respond to customer inquiries and feedback in an honest and timely fashion, and increase the accessibility of information about their products and services. Transparency also means admitting to mistakes instead of trying to cover them up, and working to make things right with customers. When executed well, transparency with customers results in elevated brand loyalty, increased sales, and stronger employee satisfaction.
In the Supply Chain – Transparency between an organization and its vendors and suppliers is essential for ensuring a productive ongoing relationship. An organization may cease doing business with a supplier who fails to honestly communicate about the sources of its materials or labor. Supply chains are increasingly being scrutinized by governments, consumers, and NGOs who are concerned about the ethical sourcing of labor and materials.
With Employees – Transparency with employees is centered around honest, two-way communications between employees of the business and their managers. This can include transparent discussions about business goals and objectives, challenges, employee performance, and other work-related issues.
In the end, the primary benefit of business transparency is that it produces trust and goodwill while safeguarding the firm’s reputation among investors, partners, employees, customers, and other stakeholders. In addition to all the above-mentioned, benefits also include:
Increasing employee morale
Boosting employee engagement and retention
Demonstrating stability and encouraging investment
Leveraging honest feedback to improve processes and drive results
Demonstrating integrity and ethical behavior
Studies show that approximately 9 in 10 individuals (85%) are expected to stick by the company during a brand crunch if it possesses a history of being fully transparent.
TRANSPARENCY AND INTERNAL INFORMATION
Transparency in business can also mean publicizing a company’s internal information externally which can include:
Financial performance
Pricing
Key processes
Hiring practices
Diversity and inclusion data
Sharing all of this information keeps companies accountable to their customers and, most importantly, pushes them to follow ethical business practices.
Nowadays, people don’t just buy your product or services — they also buy what you stand for. In Edelman’s 2019 Brand Trust Survey, 81% of survey respondents reported that they “must be able to trust the brand to do what is right” to justify their purchase of the brand’s products or services.
But how exactly do you gain people’s trust, especially when the majority of consumers are skeptical of a lot of brands’ true intentions? A crucial first step to take is to fully commit to transparency. People value transparency because we evolved to trust the people who are honest and despise those who are deceptive. The former could help us survive. The latter could do the very opposite.
In a nutshell, people buy brands — not just products — and practicing transparency helps build their trust and affinity for your company. But this begs the question — what does that actually look like?
As I started off today ALL of these angles – steps – viewpoints cause a lot of stress for everyone involved if we feel we are doing the wrong thing.
Sticking to the truth helps us to stay grounded and be sure we do our best and that will be the best guarantee for less stress in your business
And of course, all these facts and angles can be applied to your personal life too.
This discussion around transparency, around the truth or lying, can be hard to tackle. It is a sensitive subject that can stress you out a lot.
What is right and what is wrong?
If you do not know where to start or feel hard to do on your own, it’s okay! You can start with little things, such as mastering your stress management as a leader, and then with less stress, the rest will automatically follow.
I do love mantras like “A walk a day keeps the stress and anxiety away”. They stick in your memory and remind you to take your walk and the reason behind it.
LET’S TACKLE WALKING DEEP
You might be wondering how walking helps with stress and anxiety, and that’s okay. I have been already asked by a lot about this, so I thought of writing my answers here for easier reference.
The answer lies in the connection between body movement and our brains.
LET ME TAKE YOU BACK TO THE PAST
Allow me to bring back the past. At about 200,000 ish years ago, it was the survival of the fittest – and we humans either run or fight if faced with a threat.
When stressed and faced by a threat, our instincts tell us to MOVE – whether MOVE to RUN or MOVE to FIGHT, as long as we MOVE.
Isn’t it brilliant?
ONE MORE PROOF
Think of a moment where you lose a thought, and tried your best to remember while sitting but you couldn’t, and the moment that you moved… you remember the thought effortlessly.
THAT… is what I’m talking about.
EXCESS STRESS HORMONES
Our body releases extra stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline when we’re stressed.
Our body signals us that something is wrong and that we need to take care of it because if we don’t, it can be dangerous.
DANGERS OF NOT ACTING
Our body suffers physical effects like muscle tension, shallow and rapid breathing, or digestive system discomfort when we’re stressed.
This system is only supposed to kick in for short periods of time, and never longer. If it does… we can be very sick physically and mentally.
MY MISSION
During my many years as a Doctor, I’ve seen the long-term physical and mental issues from stress so I’ve made it my mission to educate and help leaders prevent and manage stress and anxiety at work and at home.
WHY WALKING?
Walking wakes the body up and clears the mind. It’s like we’re rebooting our system like we would on a phone.
It additionally clears the hormones out of our body by using them as energy, and at the same time the brain releases “feel-good” hormones.
HOW LONG DO I NEED TO WALK?
Kickstarting your day with a 30-minute walk is ideal, but even a 5-minute walk around the block that can be done even in the middle of the day can help you keep calm at work.
What’s important is you get up off your butt, and WALK.
HOW OFTEN SHOULD YOU WALK
Daily is ideal so you can make it a part of your day-by-day.
Establishing this as part of your healthy routine is the best as this can help make the rest of your day flow way much easier.
DOES YOUR WALKING NEED TO BE MONITORED?
No. You can of course get yourself a pedometer if you really want to, but honestly, I am a Doctor and I am pro-just enjoy the walk.
WALKING IS A COMMITMENT – FROM YOU TO YOU.
You are not doing this for anybody else but yourself. You take care of you and build up the resilience to face any or all hurdles for the day.
Constant brain fog, big pressure headaches? WALK IT OFF.
A TIP FROM A STRESS MANAGEMENT EXPERT
Being a pioneer in the stress industry, a tip from me is that when you’re really stressed out – admit and accept that YOU NEED A BREAK.
Your brain needs a break, and physical activity’s one of the best tools you can use.
Walking, jumping up and down, stretching, any physical movement reduce stress at the very least.
TREAT WALKING AS YOUR PILL
Take your 30-minute Brisk walk as your first pill for light depression.
As a Doctor, while it is light, do this and it helps like a first-aid kit.
If you think that your depression is severe, see a Doctor.
CHEATING YOUR BRAIN
You can actually cheat your brain if you can’t find motivation yet.
If you can’t find yourself “purposely” walking around the block, ditch elevators, escalators, and the nearest parking lot.
See an elevator/escalator? Take the stairs. Doing grocery? Park farther from the entrance!
IT IS A GOOD CARDIO EXERCISE
At the same time, walking is good cardio or moderate aerobic exercise. It is after all physical activity and any physical activity or movement improves health.
You know what they say…
“Use them or lose them.”
And if we’re gonna apply that to muscles and joints, I’d rather use them.
Now, one would sometimes say…
“I’m too busy, I don’t have that luxury of time or that 30 minutes to spend just walking.”
I understand.
But I also happen to know that most people instead of walking choose to drive the car even if the distance is not really that far. And that most people also would run to fit in that elevator rather than taking the stairs.
So really, you don’t have the time – fine… But at least choose the better options and remember that it’s a great exercise.
“But I really hate walking. I’d rather do other things than walk because I just happen to hate outside if it’s not for an errand. And I can’t do that walk inside my house, there’s not enough space.”
Sure, again, I do understand. Not all people like the outside world anyway.
But I also know that every step or movement counts. Which means…
Any physical activity, even just doing the house chores is good for your health.
All forms of physical movement are good for blood pressure, lungs, heart, cholesterol, and blood sugar levels.
MOVING IS A WONDER MEDICINE
During this pandemic, we are all encouraged to do social distancing but, of course, we all know at the same time that we can’t just ignore our health…
Taking daily walks, brisk walks, jogging, running, or just doing the house chores and using what we have at home such as stairs for our daily exercises helps.
No matter what type of exercise we do as long as we do it, we’ll be okay.
Well, I have this song dear to my heart…I was one of those big Beatles fans and there’s this song that hit me as it’s so different from all the general love and rock songs.
“The lonely people, where do they all come from? All the lonely people, where do they belong? Ah, look at all the lonely people…” – sounds familiar?
For me, this song has a very serious message.
ANDER HANSEN’S THE DEPRESSED BRAIN
I have been reading Anders Hansen’s “The Depressed Brain” lately and one chapter from this book has really good insights about loneliness… and I thought it’s worth sharing them.
Let’s begin.
Imagine a medical state that affects more than a third of us and for one out of twelve is as tough and dangerous as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. There is one, and it’s called loneliness.
It’s one of the most surprising discoveries within medical science, finding that friends and family not only give life meaning but also prolongs life and helps us stay healthy.
Amazing, isn’t it?
The sad backside is that the lack of human connections gives the risk of illness.
WHAT IS LONELINESS?
To start with, let’s define loneliness.
What is it really?
The somewhat odd medical dry definition is a worry-producing difference between being asked for and a factual perceived level of social connection.
That shows an important fact… that loneliness is the difference between how many social connections we have and how many we want to have.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE LONELY?
It is not a fixed number of Facebook friends, dinner party invitations, phone calls, etc., and differs from person to person. Take me for example, I am perfectly happy in my own companion for long hours and don’t need that many people around me to feel happy whereas some people I know almost panic if they need to be by themselves for a few hours.
THE FEELING OF BEING LONELY IS SUBJECTIVE
The experience, the feeling of loneliness is subjective and not the same thing as being by yourself. We can feel a real closeness to others even if we are by ourselves and also feel very lonely and isolated in a crowd.
So… If you feel lonely, you are lonely. And if you don’t feel lonely, you are not lonely – regardless of what your social life looks like.
It is all about your subjective feeling.
Now, don’t freak out if you feel lonely for some time now and then. It will only affect your health if it has been ongoing for months or years. To be frank, loneliness is a natural part of our biology and it’s unrealistic to believe that you can live a whole life without it.
Let me share something…
RESEARCH ON LONELINESS
A group of researchers tested 5000 people in Australia, 50 years being their mean age on their feelings in small and big groups. 2 years later, the same people answered the same questions but already took into consideration the changes that have happened within two years.
Now, that same research shows that some people who were showing signs of depression at the first round of testing showed fewer such signs after joining groups and gaining more social connections.
LONELINESS AND DEPRESSION: WHICH COMES FIRST?
There’s also this ongoing question of whether loneliness or depression comes first… and research concludes that it’s the former and that if you break the loneliness, then your chances of getting out of depression is higher.
Another big research following people over 12 years showed that 20% of all depressions were caused by loneliness and that loneliness not only affects the mind but also the body.
CAN BEING LONELY KILL YOU?
Would you believe that when the researchers looked at how some people with heart diseases died sooner than the rest of them, they saw that some patients didn’t just die because of the diseases – but also from loneliness?
The same results were shown with women with breast cancer – the ones who isolated themselves had higher risks. Studies on the overall risk of dying show that loneliness is a very important factor to have in mind.
OUR AUTONOMIC NERVE CELL SYSTEMS
So why is it like this?
Most of our body functions are steered by autonomic nerve cell systems.
This involuntary system has two settings – the sympathetic and the parasympathetic.
The sympathetic is our stress system – fear, fight, and flight. While the parasympathetic system energy goes to the calm, and, digestion of your food.
Parasympathetic is activated when you breathe slowly.
Both of these systems are constantly active in our bodies, and which one is dominant depends on the current situation we’re in.
When you run for the bus and have that important presentation at work, your sympathetic system rules. But when that presentation is over and you eat lunch after, the parasympathetic system rules.
One would think that the parasympathetic system is more active when you are lonely because you have all the time for yourself and nobody to fight against. But oddly enough, it’s actually quite the opposite.
LONELINESS AND SYMPATHETIC SYSTEM
Loneliness… triggers the sympathetic system and is connected to fight and flight rather than the calm or digestion of food.
Further research shows that loneliness makes us see the world and other people as more threatening, so we become sensitive to people’s faces and interpret rather towards the negative or the neutral expression.
Our brains amazingly develop sensitivity for these signs and see the world as hostile.
LIVE A GOOD AND LESS STRESSED LIFE
I know it already sounds depressing as it is, but my mission is to help people understand how it works and what we can do to live a good and less stressed life.
So with all this information, here’s a list of what you can do:
Take loneliness seriously.
Look for the signs. When you feel low, find that last glimpse of energy to call someone if necessary, or take a brisk walk to clear your mind and be able to think on your next move.
Find a solid support system.
If you often feel lonely, find a solid support system you can lean on. Join any group/organization that spikes up your interest, or find a group with the same hobbies as you. This way, you can do something you love and share your passion with other people. This can be a good way to start with – and the rest will come.
Help others.
If you are lonely, that doesn’t mean that you can’t help anyone. In fact, you can even help yourself by helping others who need help. Through helping, your brain gets rewarded with the feel-good hormones and it can make you happy. Once it has put you into positivity, you’ll be shocked with the energy and the effects it can give you.. You surely will end up helping more because it makes you feel so good and happy. You know what they say? There is always joy in helping.
If you know people around you who are lonely, do not frown because you can still help them.
Did you know that if someone is lonely, one tiny act can light up their mood and spread positivity? There’s a lot you can do, and here are some:
Send them a postcard.
Getting a real snail mail post is scarce today and admit it – when you get one, you feel special. What makes you think they won’t?
Give them a call.
A phone call means a lot. Did you know that there was a study conducted for 240 people who lived alone where they received phone calls from a group of young people for just 10 minutes and only twice a week, and after 4 weeks the loneliness scale of these people went 20% lower?
Be kind.
You never go wrong with this one. You don’t know who among the faces you see fight a deep battle within, so saying kind words matter. A guy’s with you in the elevator? Smile and wish him a nice day. A girl sitting with you on the bus? Smile and greet them good morning. You’d be shocked to see that these tiny acts of gesture mean a lot and go a long way. You’d be shocked with the smiles you see on their faces.
Why is it important to stay in the present and not look back?
Last week, I posted about stress in the middle of family time and one of the things I mentioned was about the memories from the past, and the no-good it brings.
Sure, while it’s fun to reminisce and all because good memories are always to treasure, you must remember to stay in those good memories and refrain from remembering the bad, and NEVER the “what ifs”. NEVER REGRET.
Why am I saying this?
MAJOR TURNING POINTS IN LIFE
When you are at a turning point in life – like the New Year celebration coming up every year – you always want to look back to see how it was before.
This does not only apply to New Year. It also works for any changes like changing schools, changing work, changing relationships, changing homes, or just about any turning point in life. You always want to look back and see what happened..
That is not a good practice, as this is where comparisons are done… This is where what-ifs are done.
REFLECT ON THE PRESENT AND NOT ON THE PAST
What we really need is to reflect on the present so we can make use of it to plan our future and be happy and successful.
“But I look in the past to use it as an inspiration that if that didn’t happen I wouldn’t be where I am right now.”
That is great!
However, generally, not everyone can do that as our brains are naturally wired for the negatives, set to focus on them to avoid dangers, like a survival instinct – to see the enemy before they see you.
Remember my post about surviving in savannah 200000ish years ago and how our biology didn’t change much but only the world? That’s it.
LESSONS, NOT EMOTIONS
So for looking back, thoughts must be controlled with all of the willpower that you have. Always remember to only get the lessons, but never get back on the emotions.
Once you have the lessons, use them in the now, and you can also start to look forward. What do you want? And although it’s not always obvious what we want, we still can as we always have a vague idea of what it could be.
What only stops most people is the fear – fear of the unknown, fear of failure.
The uncertainty is always huge so fear shows up in all its glory, but as most risk-takers have said, “You really wouldn’t know unless you try”. right?
GET OUT OF YOUR COMFORT ZONE
Getting out of your comfort zone is where you grow, and the trick to get by your thoughts is always to stay in the now.
Be in this moment right here, as both the past and the future are just thoughts in your mind.
You cannot get back to the past, and the future has not yet happened – enjoy the process and see where it will take you.
There is no shortcut to success. Behind it is multiple times of failure, it’s just a matter of letting it win over you or trying again.
WHAT IS YOUR GOAL?
The key is…
TO HAVE A GOAL AND TO WORK ON IT EVERY DAY.
Once you have a goal, once you’ve found your purpose and your practice working on them every day…
They will become habits that you do not mind doing every day and one day, you’ll just be shocked that from the bottom you’ve now reached the top!
Set a goal outside of your comfort zone and watch yourself slowly grow…
BABY STEPS MATTER
And if your goal seems hard to achieve, remember that BABY STEPS MATTER. If you are patient and consistently work on your goal and just enjoy the process, you’ll be there without you even realizing it.
You can start with 5 first action points, and the rest will show up as you go along.
When something is into your subconscious already, your mind makes you act on it.
In the high-paced world of executive leadership, taking a step back may seem counterproductive, even like falling behind. Yet, stepping back is often the most strategic move you can make to regain clarity, reduce stress, and align your actions with your long-term vision.
Why Taking a Step Back Matters for Leaders
Leadership comes with relentless pressure: meeting deadlines, managing teams, and constantly staying ahead. However, the concept of taking a deliberate pause isn’t about slowing down but recalibrating.
I recently experienced this firsthand. After months of preparing for an international event, I faced unexpected complications—health waivers, pandemic risks, and a long list of logistical headaches. Initially, I ignored my gut feeling that something wasn’t right. But as the date approached, I chose to step back and evaluate. Why was I going? Was it worth the risk, time, and energy? The decision to cancel wasn’t easy but ultimately brought immense relief and clarity.
For executives, stepping back allows you to:
See the bigger picture and reassess priorities.
Reduce burnout by aligning actions with what truly matters.
Make well-informed decisions instead of reactive ones.
The Power of a Pros-and-Cons List
One practical method I use to make tough decisions is creating a pros-and-cons list. Writing things down provides a tangible way to weigh your options. Often, your gut instinct surfaces even before you finish.
Ask yourself:
What’s the worst-case scenario if I don’t proceed?
How does this decision align with my personal and professional goals?
Will this decision relieve or add to my stress?
By stepping back and reflecting, I avoided a costly trip that would have left me drained, both emotionally and financially. Instead, I gained time to focus on meaningful tasks that moved my goals forward.
Lessons from Stepping Back
Don’t Cling to Commitments: Circumstances change, and clinging to outdated plans often leads to unnecessary stress. Reassess your commitments regularly and let go of those that no longer serve your goals.
Stop Worrying About Perceptions: Many leaders hesitate to step back, fearing judgment from colleagues or clients. The reality? Most people are focused on their own priorities. Trust your decision-making process and focus on outcomes, not opinions.
Tips for Executives: When to Take a Step Back
Identify Triggers: If you’re feeling overwhelmed, frustrated, or stuck in a decision loop, it may be time to pause.
Seek Clarity: Write down your options, consult with trusted mentors, or discuss with your team.
Trust Your Gut: Often, the right decision becomes clear once you remove external noise and focus inward.
Moving Forward After Taking a Step Back
After taking a step back, resist the urge to second-guess your decision. Commit fully to your choice and channel your energy into the present. Remember, you can always adjust your course as new information becomes available.
Taking a step back isn’t a sign of weakness—it’s a powerful strategy for sustainable success. By embracing this mindset, you can lead with greater clarity, resilience, and focus.
To your success—and keep smiling! If you’re looking for guidance on managing stress or making impactful decisions, check out my free eBook here.
What’s your experience with stepping back? Share in the comments—I’d love to hear your story!
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