Ethics is a daily practice, not just a policy.

View profile for Sarah A. Pulliam

Housing & Community Development Manager | Affordable Housing Development | Federal Grants & HUD Compliance | Public Administration & Program Leadership

🌟 Ethics is not a policy—it’s a practice. In my career, I’ve learned that ethical behavior isn’t just about following written rules or compliance checklists. It’s about the daily decisions that no one sees, the choices that test your integrity when the stakes are high and the pressure is real. I remember sitting in a meeting where a funding decision could have been pushed through quickly with little scrutiny. It would have saved time. It would have been easier. But it wasn’t the right thing for the community. Stopping the process to ask hard questions slowed us down—but it ensured transparency, fairness, and accountability. That pause mattered more than the convenience of speed. In public service, ethics means: ✔️ Transparency – being open with colleagues, partners, and the community about how and why decisions are made. ✔️ Accountability – owning mistakes and correcting them, even when it’s uncomfortable. ✔️ Respect – treating every partner, applicant, and community member with dignity, no matter their position or resources. ✔️ Trust – understanding that the trust placed in us is fragile and must be earned daily. Ethical leadership is not always the easiest path. It often requires slowing down when others want to move fast, asking tough questions when silence would be more comfortable, and standing firm when it would be easier to bend. But over time, those choices build the trust and credibility that allow us to truly serve. 💬 I’d love to hear your perspective: What does ethical behavior mean to you when the easier path isn’t the right one?

Patricia Reece

Clinical Director and Founder

3w

Thank you for putting this to words! Ethics is something we talk about a lot in Mental Health, and it is easy to feel self-confident that we are taking ethics into consideration with every choice. Being aware of ethics as a practice is so incredibly important!

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