“This I Believe” the First Draft
Introduction
In a dominantly materialistic society today, material gains have overpowered feelings and substance in relationships making loyalty a luxury that not many people can afford. In today’s society, it is challenging to find loyal people in business or personal lives. People are going to any level, including betraying their family members and friends, to gain material wealth or popularity. No single relationship can survive without commitment, trust, and honesty, which sums up to loyalty. Therefore, Regardless of the relationship between any two persons or more, I believe loyalty is essential in the relationship.
Body
Security is an essential factor that determines resilience and the quality of relationships. Security means having support from the other person in the relationship and having confidence that they cannot jeopardize the relationship. Therefore, be it in business or personal relationships, loyalty helps create security. There are business sectors that require a very high level of commitment to generate security among the customers. For instance, a cosmetics customer has to create security about the supplier of cosmetic products. If the supplier provides substandard products, they could impact the buyer, and this is a sensitive issue such that the buyer and the seller have to have loyalty to keep their business dealing going.
In romantic relationships, insecurity issues are usually rampant where one partner is being accused of insecurity while the other is being accused of not being loyal. My brother, for the longest time, has been working abroad in the United Arab Emirates (Dubai). He also has a family that he has left behind in the United States. However, I have never had them had a quarrel or marital issue based on trust since both of them are loyal to one another, and that is why they have managed to bring their marriage this far and achieved so much as a couple.
In today’s world, fake relationships are very rampant such that many relationships are ending either too soon or in tears. Loyalty means being honest, trustworthy, and committed, and thus, dedication forms the basis of any real relationship. For instance, when I started dating my girlfriend, I had a good job, a nice car, lived in a lovely house, and I had almost everything figured out. Months down the line, I lost my career, I could no longer finance my mortgage, and I lost my house; I sold my car and downgraded on everything. However, she stuck with me through the downfall and helped me to rise again. If there was no loyalty in our relationship, she would not have committed to me and stuck with me, but she did since our relationship was real. We live in different towns, but even if we go for days or weeks without seeing each other, there is no suspicion and second-guessing each other.
I believe we had this relationship in a company I used to work in in the same concept of creating real relationships through honesty and commitment. In one instance, our institution hired a new receptionist, who was a 20-year-old lady. I was tasked with showing her the organization’s ins and outs, and therefore we spent so much time together in the office. Two weeks later, she reported me to the HR claiming is assaulted her sexually. This accusation is very grave in the institution, and the outcome is the legal procedure on sexual harassment and being fired. However, my bosses decided they should investigate the matter first since they did not think I could do such a thing. I was given a 2-weeks compulsory leave, after which they fired the woman and reinstated me back. My coworkers’ loyalty drove them to defend me and do whatever they could to show that I was innocent.
Usually, people say that when you give something, do not expect anything in return. However, I believe loyalty is never forgotten and allows one to set his or her priorities right. If you are loyal to another person, it is challenging for him or her to betray you if, at all, they are loyal to you too. For instance, I worked in a particular organization a while back, and I was a very loyal employee defending the brand even when I was not required to do it. The company started experiencing administration challenges and filed for bankruptcy resulting in massive retrenchment. It was challenging to find a new job since soon after, the COVIDD-19 pandemic hit the world and made things even worse for businesses. However, my bosses used the connections to get me a new job in another organization without me even asking for it. My bosses could not forget my loyalty to the organization and placed me in their priority list when opportunities came calling.
Loyalty has also allowed me to set my priorities right such that I do not have to spend time with people; I feel their loyalty is not with me. For instance, I host dinner for my family and closest friends. My family is so annoying with my comedian mother, who keeps making jokes about my legs, my dad, who keeps reminding my sister that she needs to get a man and get married soon, and my sisters who do nothing but argue. However, I would rather have a boring and nerve-wracking weekend rather than spend time who do not care about me. My family might be annoying, but they will be there for me when no else will; they will support me unconditionally, and mostly they will never lie to me.
Conclusion
There are values that one could compromise on if the other person in a relationship does not possess them in life. However, we could never compromise on loyalty as it forms the basis of any real connection and helps set our priorities right. Loyalty, I believe, is the essential quality that one could offer in a relationship. Besides being focused so much on gaining comfort and living a good life, we should also consider that the other person matters. Building this value is more important than gaining money or influence; it shows our level of care and trust and our love towards them.