I think I was the only person in the world who was not shocked at the whole Tiger Woods scandal. Let’s be frank: he’s a rich, good-looking, world-traveling guy with a killer physique. Oh- and he’s a man! Not that all men are cheaters. But when you add up all of the “risk factors” including that he’s away from home a lot and friends with other sports figures who are not known for their fidelity, it’s hardly a surprise. To me, anyway.
Nevertheless, I don’t expect infidelity is inevitable. I personally expect everyone to be a person of integrity. This default expectation has not always served me well, but I continue to expect this level of honesty from people. I was unsure how I felt about Nike sticking by his side.
Planning my evening escape I logged into Hulu to find featured on its front page a video about a Nike Ad sparking more debate about the scandal. Curious, I watched the video.
My own reaction was exactly as Donny Deutsch’s. I needed Nike to address it. Do I think Tiger is “fixed”? No. I think he’s human. As such I wonder if he’s better at all, or still going through the motions as long as he feels the heat. You must understand: I’ve dealt very intimately with two sociopaths continually over the past 20 years. That’s more than half my life, people. I don’t want to judge Tiger based on my experience that’s got nothing to him, and I’m careful not to. But I’m careful to not be all butterflies and roses, too. If it was an honest mistake (that is, the root of what led to his myriad indiscretions and generally poor judgment), then no doubt he’s getting better. He said he is at the big conference we all watched. Either we’re convinced, we’re not, or we’re withholding judgment and nothing he says is going to change that because we don’t know him.
But we do know ourselves.
Tiger has acknowledged his transgressions. Now it’s time for Nike to acknowledge their actions. They could have swept it under the rug, and everyone would have gone about their business with yet another validation that honesty and integrity and trust don’t mean anything any more. That the almighty dollar reigns. But I need more than that. I need honesty and integrity and trust. So when Nike makes the bold move to acknowledge their sticking by someone so flawed, and tells me that it’s because he’s flawed that they stuck by him, and indicate that they’re genuinely interested in and committed to helping flawed people in their lives overcome their issues, they have completely won me over.
Because I’m flawed too.
If only we all had a friend like Nike.
