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August 5, 2022 By Richard Bowen

Americans Who Tell the Truth, Speaking Truth to Youth Video Series

I have previously posted about the esteemed Robert Shetterly painting my portrait for his Americans Who Tell the Truth (AWTT) gallery, and being included as one of only seventeen whistleblowers honored.

And recently I was asked to participate in AWTT’s Speaking Truth to Youth video series, which, in their words, “reflect AWTT’s belief that our portrait subjects are not superheroes but real people whose work is driven by moral courage and a passion for truth and justice.”

In the short discussion, I shared how my sister and I grew up with a strong sense of right and wrong, “With the complete expectation that we would always do what was right. And when we didn’t do what was right, we suffered the consequences.”

That accountability could take several forms, and spanking was more often than not involved at that time. But what stuck with me more than corporal punishment were the realizations that came from seeing what came from our actions.

I shared a story about a young, maybe four- or five-year-old me, playing with matches. I knew I wasn’t supposed to, but I was out in a field and playing with matches. Well, that field caught fire, of course, and instead of getting my mother, I ran way. When my mother found out, I was punished, of course. But the lessons I took away from that day weren’t just not to play with matches. I learned that 1) you always do what is right, because when you don’t do what is right someone can be hurt by those actions. And 2) Harm will happen when you don’t do things that are right.

And that’s pretty concerning to me, because in today’s environment, people often do what is best for them, personally, rather than what is right. And they don’t seem to care about the harm they cause. People don’t have a sense of what is right and what is wrong, what is selfish, and what will not do harm to others. I’m convinced a lot of our troubles we are experiencing in today’s environment are due to the fact that people don’t know how to make ethical decisions. They’ve never been exposed to that before.

Yes, be true to yourself, but also be conscious of what actions can be taken and how they will impact others. I’ve seen firsthand that there can be tremendous damage done to the economy and done to individuals with unethical decision making. If we can get back to accountability and trusting everyone to leave this place a little bit better off than we found it, we might be able to reduce the harm we do in the world.

Think through the decisions you are making and assess the wider impact of those decisions. And no matter what else happens, don’t allow yourself to become involved in unethical situations. Because when you are involved, all of a sudden, you are contributing to the circumstances that cause harm to others. There will be consequences to every decision. We just have to decide which consequences we can live with, and which ones we want to avoid.

SIM Card Fraud, My Personal Experience
Ethics in the Last and Next Financial Crisis

Tagged With: Americans Who Tell The Truth, Ethics, Speaking Truth to Youth

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Richard Bowen is widely known as the Citigroup whistleblower. As Business Chief Underwriter for Citigroup during the housing bubble financial crisis meltdown, he repeatedly warned Citi executive management and the board about fraudulent behavior within the organization. The company certified poor mortgages as quality mortgages and sold them to Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac and other investors.

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What People Are Saying About Richard M. Bowen

William D. Cohan"Richard Bowen is one of my heroes. His is a story of human fortitude at its best and Wall Street at its worst."

~ William D. Cohan, NY Times Best Selling Author
2017-06-30T10:08:59-05:00
"Richard Bowen is one of my heroes. His is a story of human fortitude at its best and Wall Street at its worst." ~ William D. Cohan, NY Times Best Selling Author
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/2556/

Eileen McDonnell"Richard Bowen reinforced my motto that "there is no right way to do a wrong thing.” Long after his presentation, the conversation has continued about personal responsibility and the courage to challenge things that appear to be wrong. We encourage this dialog and rely on it to help make our business stronger."

~ Eileen McDonnell, Chairman, CEO, & President, Penn Mutual
2015-02-13T19:51:19-06:00
"Richard Bowen reinforced my motto that "there is no right way to do a wrong thing.” Long after his presentation, the conversation has continued about personal responsibility and the courage to challenge things that appear to be wrong. We encourage this dialog and rely on it to help make our business stronger." ~ Eileen McDonnell, Chairman, CEO, & President, Penn Mutual
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/711/

Ben Stein"Richard Bowen, you are a star and a hero."

~ Ben Stein, Economist and Political Commentator
2015-02-13T19:50:26-06:00
"Richard Bowen, you are a star and a hero." ~ Ben Stein, Economist and Political Commentator
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/712/

Jim Farrell"Richard's speech at the April Financial Executives International dinner was informative, interesting, riveting, and fast moving.  The feedback from members was overwhelming positive, and Richard received one of the few standing ovations given by our membership."

~ Jim Farrell, Program Chairman, Dallas Chapter, Financial Executives International
2014-12-28T19:48:17-06:00
"Richard's speech at the April Financial Executives International dinner was informative, interesting, riveting, and fast moving.  The feedback from members was overwhelming positive, and Richard received one of the few standing ovations given by our membership." ~ Jim Farrell, Program Chairman, Dallas Chapter, Financial Executives International
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/532/

Dennis McCuistion"Richard Bowen has been there, done that, and has the scars to prove it, and his message of corruption at the highest levels of industry and government needs to be heard. I only wish that more bankers had the courage that Bowen exhibits. He is not only one of the most talented bankers I have ever met, he has more integrity than all the bankers on Wall Street put together. If his former employer had listened to him taxpayers would not have had to bail out Citi for the third time in the last 30 years."

~ Dennis McCuistion, Host of the McCuistion TV program
2014-12-28T19:48:06-06:00
"Richard Bowen has been there, done that, and has the scars to prove it, and his message of corruption at the highest levels of industry and government needs to be heard. I only wish that more bankers had the courage that Bowen exhibits. He is not only one of the most talented bankers I have ever met, he has more integrity than all the bankers on Wall Street put together. If his former employer had listened to him taxpayers would not have had to bail out Citi for the third time in the last 30 years." ~ Dennis McCuistion, Host of the McCuistion TV program
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/533/

Betty Garrett"Richard Bowen is a dynamic, entertaining speaker and story-teller - a CPA with a great personality!"

~ Betty Garrett, Garrett Speakers International
2014-12-28T19:47:50-06:00
"Richard Bowen is a dynamic, entertaining speaker and story-teller - a CPA with a great personality!" ~ Betty Garrett, Garrett Speakers International
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/531/

fred-timmons"I believe Richard Bowen is the only keynote speaker to ever receive a standing ovation from the Texas Society of CPA’s at any of its annual conferences."

~ Fred Timmons, Chairman of The Texas Society of CPA's
2014-12-28T19:47:22-06:00
"I believe Richard Bowen is the only keynote speaker to ever receive a standing ovation from the Texas Society of CPA’s at any of its annual conferences." ~ Fred Timmons, Chairman of The Texas Society of CPA's
https://richardmbowen.com/testimonials/530/

Presentation Topics

Playing for High Stakes: The Principles and Practice of Ethical Leadership

Dark Citi: The Story of a Whistleblower

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Now an ethical leadership speaker, Richard Bowen was Citigroup's Business Chief Underwriter during the housing bubble.

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