Req 3 — Ethical Decisions

In Requirement 2, you studied ethical leadership in someone else. Now it is time to turn the lens on yourself. This requirement asks you to reflect on your own ethical decisions — one you have already made and several you might face in the future.

This is one of the most personal requirements in the entire badge. There are no textbook answers here. Your counselor wants to hear your honest reflections about real moments in your life.

Part A: Your Past Ethical Decision

Think back to a time when you had to choose between doing the right thing and doing the easy thing. It does not have to be a dramatic, life-changing moment. Ethical decisions happen every day, and the small ones matter just as much as the big ones.

Here are some examples to jog your memory:

• A friend asked you to help them cheat on a test.
• You saw someone being teased and had to decide whether to speak up.
• You found something valuable that did not belong to you.
• A group of friends wanted to exclude someone, and you had to decide whether to go along.
• You made a mistake and had to decide whether to tell the truth about it.

Once you have your moment, walk through these questions:

What happened? Set the scene. Who was involved? What were the stakes?

What did you do? Describe your actual choice — not what you wish you had done, but what really happened.

How did it feel? Were you proud? Nervous? Relieved? Guilty? Ethical decisions almost always come with complicated feelings.

Would you do anything differently? This is the most important question. Looking back with fresh eyes, would you make the same choice? If not, what would you change and why?

Part B: Future Ethical Decisions

Now think forward. The requirement asks you to list three ethical decisions you might face in the future and explain what you would do in each case. Think about the different areas of your life:

At School: Ethical decisions at school might involve academic honesty, standing up to bullying, including someone who is left out, or navigating peer pressure.

At Home: At home, ethical decisions could involve being honest with your parents, treating siblings fairly, or taking responsibility for a mistake.

In the Workplace: As you get older and start working, you might face decisions about honesty with a boss, treating coworkers fairly, or refusing to cut corners on safety.

In Your Community: Community decisions might involve volunteering your time, standing up for someone at a public event, or choosing to help a neighbor in need.

Part C: Your Upstander Plan

The final part of this requirement ties everything together. Your counselor wants to hear your plan for being an upstander — someone who takes action when they see something wrong.

Being an upstander does not mean you have to be fearless. It means you are willing to act, even when it is uncomfortable. Here are some practical strategies:

Speak up directly. If you feel safe, calmly tell the person that their behavior is not okay. “Hey, that’s not cool” can be surprisingly effective.

Support the target. Sometimes the most powerful thing you can do is stand next to the person being hurt. Walk with them, sit with them, or simply say, “Are you okay?”

Report it. If the situation is too big for you to handle alone, tell a trusted adult — a teacher, parent, Scoutmaster, or counselor. This is not snitching; it is leadership.

Refuse to participate. Even if you cannot stop what is happening, you can choose not to join in. Do not laugh, do not share the post, do not pile on.

You have looked backward at your own past, forward into your future, and mapped out how you will show up as an upstander. That kind of self-reflection is exactly what ethical leadership looks like.