Ride For The Brand

When you hear "Ride for the brand," you may think of corporate America, standing behind your company, however the saying comes from the old west where the cowboy would ride for the brand, following the cattle till the end because it was his job, his livelihood.

Coming from Wyoming, the last Old West, I've been so fortunate to learn Cowboy Ethics from true cowboys, true men who stand behind their work, honor their work, their family and would certainly give the shirt off their back for their neighbor. Too often now, especially in the big city we don't even know who our neighbor is - why is that. It's truly unfortunate.

Not only are Cowboy Ethics important to me and my family but they have become law in the great state of Wyoming. In March of 2010, Gov. Dave Freudenthal signed legislation adopting an official Wyoming state code.

The symbolic measure spells out 10 ethics derived from a "Code of the West" outlined in a book by author and retired Wall Street investor James Owen.

The ethics code carries no criminal penalties and is not meant to replace any civil codes.

The state code admonishes residents and lawmakers to live courageously, take pride in their work, finish what they start, do what's necessary, be tough but fair, keep promises, ride for the brand, talk less and say more, remember that some things aren't for sale, and know where to draw the line.

If only this code could continue onto our children, but then again, why can't it. Beyond teaching your son to be a gentleman (a near lost art in and of itself), beyond teaching our daughters to be strong and expect greatness, why not teach our youth that a handshake means something, your word, means something. Hard work shows you care about your legacy so why not teach our legacy to strive for the best, do the best, be the best because in the end your word, your character, that handshake is ALL you have.

I pray at the end of the day I've been a great friend, a great family member and a great neighbor. I hope to pass on to my son why your word and your character are the most important tools you have in your saddle bag and that he'll ride for the brand long after I'm gone.