22. Scandal at Foresters Financial, with former VP of PR Henry DeVries

Henry DeVries had to choose: a big fat raise and a promotion, or maintain his integrity.The year was 1996, and Henry was the Vice President of Public Relations at Foresters Financial. He had just found out about an ongoing affair between two high-ranking executives, and they had made their intentions clear. They wanted him to aid in the cover-up, for which he would be richly rewarded.But sticking to his principles was just the first lesson in what would become a crash course in scandal, marital infidelity, prostitution and executive embezzlement. And those principles of his would shortly become Henry's only life raft.Now a San Diego-based business coach, author, Forbes columnist, and the CEO of Indie Books International, Henry recalls the story today as a career-defining lesson that marked a turning point in his understanding of leadership.------Visit the Lead Balloon web page to sign up for our e-newsletter and stay looped in on a big upcoming announcement. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices