Consistency & Cheating

I must have really taken the “cheaters never win” saying as a kid to heart.

I can’t *stand* cheating.

Whether it’s in sports, in school, or in life — if I knew where my craw was, there’d definitely be something stuck in there when I come across a cheater.

When I say cheater, I mean someone who takes advantage of the rules to get ahead.

Sadly, it seems like society often rewards people who cheat. Sometimes its not even those who bend the rules, but those who believe the rules shouldn’t apply to them at all.

These are the people who grew up watching cartoon villains and… I guess thought what the bad guy was doing was appealing.

I have lots of experience with cheaters

Ok maybe I wouldn’t call them cheaters per se, but there are lots of people in sports who are constantly trying to gain an advantage. Sometimes that advantage is unfair.

From the mild misdirection (flopping to draw a foul) to the major offenses (using illegal substances), there’s no shortage of examples of people breaking the rules to win the game.

In a previous blog post, I shared a little bit about my background as a referee. I’ve not only been a referee, but I’ve helped train officials who’ve gone on to officiate in the NFL, NBA, NCAA, and even the Olympics.

People who watch and play sports expect a lot from officials. One of the things they demand most is… Consistency.

If I had a nickel for every time I have heard the phrase “Call it both ways!“, I would have lots and lots of nickels.

When I’m training a new sports official, I like to tell them that being consistent in your decision-making is critical. When the pressure’s on, maintaining your integrity and credibility will carry you forward. Even in the rare occasion when you get something wrong.

Consistency on a Team

In a team or organization, Consistency is a talent that helps maintain order and processes, ensuring fairness is at the forefront and everyone is treated with clear, consistent expectations.

Consistency isn’t necessarily about combating cheaters, but those who value this talent derive great satisfaction from keeping the playing field level.

One of the best examples of someone using their consistency talent that I’ve seen recently didn’t happen on a playing field.

It happened during an UNO tournament.

During a recent teambuilding session I led, I had a group play a brief UNO tournament to get them thinking about strengths in action. Usually, I see things like Competition (someone really wants to win, even though there’s no prize), Learner (someone wants to read the rules before the game starts), or Communication (someone is constantly narrating the game, keeping the group updated on the status).

In this game, one of the participants was about to make her move.

She was close to getting UNO and winning the game. As she was looking at the cards in her hand, she stopped and said to the person next to her, “Hold on, I can see your cards.”

She wasn’t just being a friendly competitor. Instead, she was making sure the game was fair—by not taking advantage of an honest mistake by the person next to her and ensuring that when her turn came around, nobody could accuse her of cheating.

To me, this was a textbook example of Consistency in action.

I’ve seen many players who would gladly take the victory and chalk the opponent’s loose card security up to “just part of the game.”

But not this person. She wasn’t going to win unfairly. It mattered to her that everyone played by the same set of rules. And to me, that was a perfect illustration of Consistency as one of her top strengths.

After the game, I couldn’t resist sharing what I observed with the group. I noticed that Consistency was in her top 5 .

I asked her, “Would it have bothered you if you had won unfairly?” She didn’t even hesitate. “Yes,” she said. “Because it’s always important to me that people play by the same rules.”

And just like that, we saw Consistency in its purest form.

Leveling the Playing Field

It’s easy to see how important Consistency is when you’re enforcing the rules of a game. But what about when you’re not on the field (or in an UNO battle)?

How does Consistency show up in teams and workplaces?

People with the Consistency talent make sure that all team members are held to the same standards. This fosters a sense of fairness and equity. When everyone knows what to expect, it can reduce resentment and increase collaboration.

Our friends with Consistency also bring structure and stability to a team by setting clear processes and routines.

Someone with this talent might not hesitate to call out mistreatment. They might be motivated by their internal sense of duty to report bad behavior, or correct someone when they appear to be cutting corners.

To some, this might not sound necessary. But some of the most notoriously bad actors in corporate misbehavior could have used more leaders with Consistency talents to help prevent and correct unethical or improper actions.

Let’s say we are working on a project or new program. When we let the people with Consistency talent communicate how the process is going to work, we can work more efficiently, minimize confusion, and get things done more reliably.

So, next time you’re on a team, or even just playing a friendly game of cards, think about how Consistency could elevate the experience for everyone.

Trust me, it’s not always easy to make the right call – but in the end it will be worth it.

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