Once upon a time in a tiny French village, the townspeople decided to honor their parish priest by each bringing a bottle of wine the following Sunday for the pastor’s empty wine barrel. The pastor was delighted, and he asked all in attendance to join him for a glass of wine from the now full barrel. But when the tap was opened, only water came out.

Each villager had brought water instead of wine -- thinking that all the others would bring wine and the one bottle of water would never be detected.

Alas, they all had decided to ignore their agreement, and they were all exposed as cheaters.

What is cheating? Simply put, it is breaking the rules.

Cheating has become so normalized in society that people are hardly shocked by it anymore. There has been a consistent, gradual decline in ethical business practices in the United States for about 50 years. And it’s reached new extremes lately in almost every institution that can be measured. Business leaders, politicians, religious institutions, sports heroes, college students trying to get better grades and parents cheating to get their children into college are just some of the examples that are easy to spot.

That’s why I always advise everyone to “Act like your mother is watching.”

Many people cheat in one way or another to get ahead in life. For example, some people cheat to pass exams, while others cheat to win games. In some cases, cheating can seem to be beneficial, but it is often illegal and always unethical. As cheating becomes increasingly common in schools and workplaces, more people are beginning to ask themselves if cheating is becoming acceptable because it is overlooked so often.

For example, a new study has found that more than 90% of college students have cheated somehow. The survey, conducted by the NCAA, surveyed over 4,000 students at various colleges and universities across the United States and found that cheating is not just a problem on one campus -- it’s a problem nationwide.

A teacher was talking to his colleague and observed, “The worst thing that can happen to a student starting school is to get caught cheating.”

“Not at all,” said the colleague. “The worst thing at the start of a person’s life is to cheat and NOT get caught.”

A mechanic whom I have patronized for years explained that his profession is frequently mistrusted by customers who question why certain repairs are needed because some greedy competitors try to “sell” services that are unnecessary.

Ask a hundred human resources managers if they have ever seen a suspicious resume -- exaggerated credentials, fake degrees, questionable experience -- and I’d bet you can count on both thumbs how many say they have not.

Performance-enhancing drugs in sports? Athletes know they are banned, yet some still try to cheat their way to success. Clean athletes who turn in stellar performances know there is no substitute for training and talent. But because some refuse to follow the rules, everyone has to be tested to prove they haven’t cheated.

Cheaters spoil the fun for everyone, regardless of the situation. A tainted victory is never a victory; it’s an admission that you don’t trust your own abilities or aren’t reliable enough to be trusted by others. It’s a difficult habit to break, but it can be done.

Here’s a final story to illustrate my point. A baker bought his butter from a local farmer. After some time, the baker began to suspect that he wasn’t receiving full pound bricks of butter from the farmer.

For several days, he weighed the butter after it was delivered. His suspicions proved correct. So he turned to the law to settle the matter.

The farmer was brought to court to answer for his act of fraud. “What kind of scale do you use?” the judge asked.

“I don’t have a scale, your honor,” replied the farmer.

“Then how can you weigh the butter that you sell?”

“It’s pretty simple,” the farmer said. “I have balances, and I use the one-pound loaf of bread I buy from the baker as a weight.”

Case dismissed.

I learned a long time ago that by not cheating -- and doing the right thing, you will live a much happier life than trying to cheat your way through it. Just tell the truth. It’s so simple, so basic -- and the cover-up is always worse. You’ll also sleep much better at night.

Mackay’s Moral: People don’t cheat by chance, they cheat by choice.

A young banker asked a retiring banker what the secret of success was in banking, to which the older banker responded, “Good judgment.”

The rookie then said, “How do you get good judgment?”

The older banker said, “Experience.”

To which the youngster asked, “How do you get experience?”

And the retiring banker said, “Bad judgment.”

Anyone who has ever been in business can identify with that story.

As a business leader and parent, the one attribute that I value most is a person’s good judgment. Judgment is the result of a person’s decision-making. When your values are clear, making decisions becomes much easier.

Nothing replaces good judgment. International Judgment Day is Jan. 17 every year.

Good judgment involves evaluating circumstances, weighing the positives and negatives and considering alternatives.

“In the face of ambiguity, uncertainty and conflicting demands, often under great time pressure, leaders must make decisions and take effective actions to assure the survival and success of their organizations,” said leadership expert Warren Bennis. “This is how leaders add value to their organizations. They lead them to success by exercising good judgment, by making smart calls when especially difficult and complicated decisions simply must be made, and then ensuring that they are well-executed.”

A variety of challenges confront leaders and team members every day: budgets, mistakes, delays, staffing, conflicts, safety, profits -- all call for making decisions that can affect an organization’s future. When decisions must be made quickly with limited information, being able to trust your good judgment is central to making the right call.

What are the skills you need to improve your judgment?

-- Ethics is all about knowing what is right and wrong. Is it fair and legal? When I talk about ethics in my speeches, I introduce the subject by saying, “Act like your mother is watching.”

-- Consistency is expected. You can’t let emotions or intense situations affect your judgment. Even the best business plans will fail without a dedication to consistency.

-- Listen to learn. Listening to others allows you to collect and assess important information rather than relying on your opinion or personal bias. Good judgment is about making the best decisions rather than relying on your opinion.

-- Accept your mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes. Accept responsibility and move forward. The important thing is to learn from your mistakes, figure out what went wrong and don’t repeat them.

-- Learn from experience. As the opening story says, nothing beats experience in improving your judgment. If something went wrong, do things differently the next time, and if things went right, learn from your decisions.

In addition to those skills, John Spacey, writing on Simplicable.com, emphasizes the need for pragmatism and situational awareness. Accepting “difficult real-world conditions such as uncertainty, gray areas and imperfections” is a must for making sensible and sound decisions. Equally important is the “ability to be highly observant and diligent to respond to fast-moving situations,” he writes.

Here’s another story to illustrate my point. A business owner who was nearing retirement invested her life savings in a business enterprise which had been elaborately explained to her by a swindler.

When her investment disappeared and the wonderful dream was shattered, she went to the office of the Better Business Bureau. They asked, “Why on earth didn’t you come to us first? Didn’t you know about the Better Business Bureau?”

“Oh, yes,” said the businesswoman, sadly. “I’ve always known about you. But I didn’t come, because I was afraid you’d tell me not to do it.”

It’s a sad story we’ve heard over and over again. Too bad her judgment didn’t lead her to ask questions that she might have asked about the proposed investment: Is this a risk I can afford to take? Is this person honest and trustworthy? Is this the right time to take such a gamble? What if it doesn’t work out as planned?

Simple but necessary questions could have saved her a life of regret.

Mackay’s Moral: Judgment is knowing which door to open when opportunity knocks.

I played golf with a friend recently. I was fascinated by his career accomplishments and leadership principles. He’s exactly the leader of the future that I believe in, and so I asked him to share his philosophy, much of which I’ve actually practiced.

Alan Mulally was the president and chief executive officer of the Ford Motor Company from 2006-2014. At Ford, he led one of the most successful corporate turnarounds in history, with Ford becoming the No. 1 automobile brand in the United States. Prior to that, he worked for Boeing for 37 years, rising to become president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, where he led the development of the world-class 777 airplane.

It was at Boeing that Alan first developed his “Working Together” principles, practices and management system culture, in which people flourish and develop a sense of meaning and purpose in their work. In short, his philosophy is “to serve is to live.”

Here is his leadership and management system:

People first. Everyone is worthy of respect at all levels of your organization. Appreciate your people, thank them, celebrate them for their work and contributions. Alan often ate lunch in the employee cafeteria and asked employees what they needed to do their jobs better.

Everyone is included. In the past, management in public companies focused on shareholders. Alan’s philosophy is that all stakeholders must be included -- employees, suppliers, unions, partners, leasing companies, bankers, investors, governments and all the communities where you do business. He calls this stakeholder-centered leadership.

Compelling vision, comprehensive strategy and positive, relentless implementation. The plan must be clear, concise and shared with all of the stakeholders. It must then be carried out with determination and transparency.

Clear performance goals. Alan believes any plan should create long-term value and profitable growth for all the stakeholders, with products and services that people want and value.

One plan. Most companies have multiple plans for achievement. Alan focuses on just one comprehensive plan and makes sure that everyone in the organization knows what it is and its current status.

Facts and data. Alan said: “As leaders, we really care what people think and what their opinions are, and we also really appreciate the facts and data. When we have an issue, knowing the facts and data allows us to move forward confidently to solve the issues together.”

Everyone knows the plan, the status and areas that need special attention. When everyone knows the plan and status, with no secrets, we can find a solution in a timely manner.

Adopt a positive, “find-a-way” attitude. Alan would hold special attention meetings to solve challenges. He said: “Positive, find-a-way attitudes are so important as we work together to address our challenges. It is important to let the team see that having a problem is not a reflection on them personally. It is a chance for the team to work together.”

Respect, listen, help, and appreciate each other. Treating each other well can only lead to a healthy and successful organization where everyone works together on solutions to an improved plan. Alan made sure every employee was part of the team. All opinions were respected.

Emotional resilience -- trust the process. Few things go smoothly. You must expect the unexpected and deal with it positively. Review the vision, strategy and plan and work together as a team, making sure everyone is included.

Have fun -- enjoy the journey and each other. Alan said: “(E)njoy working together with so many talented people who are dedicating their lives and talent to create and deliver their great products and services for all our stakeholders and the greater good.”

Alan believes that the leaders of the future need to continue to move forward to a stakeholder-centered leadership model by “facilitating and coaching with humility, love and service.”

With a philosophy like that, a leader can’t help but succeed!

Mackay’s Moral: A good leader inspires others with confidence in him or her. A great leader inspires them with confidence in themselves.