Honesty Pays Off for UPS Driver. Good PR Pays Off for UPS.

Yesterday, it was reported that a UPS driver’s unscheduled delivery in New Jersey has paid off for most everyone concerned.

According to news sources, John Piontkowsi spotted a bank bag in the middle of the road while he was making deliveries. Inside the bag, he found $5,200 and deposit slip indicating the money came from Stuyvesant Liquor in Jersey City. Piontkowski — an honest, decent guy — took the money to the bank and said he never considered keeping the cash.

The store owner says he and his wife were busy running errands Wednesday when they lost track of the money. They gratefully gave Mr. Piontkowski a reward based on his honesty and integrity.

It says a lot about Mr. Piontkowski that he took the high road (no pun) and returned the money. It says a lot about UPS that they hire drivers who are honest enough to do the right thing. And it says a lot about social media that this story will likely spread like wildfire across the internet.

For Consideration:

One of the incredible things about social media and the internet is the concept of transparency.
Since virtually everything on the net is transparent, it exposes bad people who, in the old days, might have slipped under our radar.
In similar fashion, the internet highlights good people — like Mr. Piontkowski — and draws positive associations for their employers.

The Bottom Line:

The internet is creating a “Digital Mayberry” where everyone knows what everyone else is doing. A lot of people are threatened by this. In my opinion, it’s a good thing because it helps prevent bad people from doing bad things.

There’s a lot to be said for the “Digital Mayberry” concept. It was an idea that I first brought up in a BeanCast podcast and was tagged “Digital Mayberry” by Rob Schwartz, Chief Creative Officer for TWBAChiatDay on the same broadcast.

The world his changing very rapidly and some of those changes are not so good. But some of them — like my Digital Mayberry concept — aren’t so bad after all.