Virtue. Happiness requires moral
character. Interestingly, neither TCS
nor TDI have formal ethics or character
development programs, yet each
has been given prestigious ethics and
related awards. Ethics and character
building permeate everything they
do. Moral training comes in large part
from the corporate visions and foundational
principles that all employees
learn, assimilate and continue to practice.
This moral guidance, coupled
with the responsibility to make decisions,
helps develop the moral character
and intellectual expertise
necessary to make good decisions.
Making good decisions results in
authentic and justifiable pride—selfesteem,
self-respect, self-approval,
self-admiration, self-actualization.
All of this is essential for reducing
the negative effects of stress, for
enhancing one’s ability to cope and
strong feelings of self-efficacy. ForAristotle this type of pride was the
‘‘crown’’ of the virtues because ‘‘it
enhances them and is never found
apart from them.’’ Importantly, exercising
the virtues is a person’s route to
true happiness.
Aristotle wrote over 2000 years ago. In
recent years a group of psychologists, stimulated
in part by his thought, have sought to
bring more modern tools to bear on the pursuit
of happiness.