Last week we hosted a breakfast debate at our agency. The subject was one that is very dear to us, honesty. We wanted to get to the bottom of why we lie so much as an industry, and try to present the case for honesty as a great return on investment.

The debate revolved around the opinions of three leaders in their field – Judith Secombe, Group Publishing Director, Hearst Magazines UK, Hannah Wilson, Head of Marketing, Gumtree and Ewen Macaskill, Defense and Intelligence correspondent, The Guardian. We discussed honesty and how more than ever we must fight to defend it.

At Feed, we believe that honesty can work like a virtuous flywheel. The more honesty in an agency, the more relaxed the people are. The more relaxed the people, the better the work. The better the work, the better the relationship with the client. This leads to more & better work. And so the flywheel turns. Not a bad return for just telling the truth.

Ultimately, telling the truth isn’t always easy, we’re seemingly programmed to lie. But try and rewrite the code. You won’t look back.