It's difficult for sure. It will draw out every ounce of your political skills. It sometimes means leaving your job, and although it doesn't necessarily mean sacrificing your whole career, optimizing for ethics may impede your ability to optimize for other things like compensation or power.

> usually not up to the task

Hmm, "usually"? It sounds like you've done at least something sometime, even though you may not have been satisfied. Kudos for doing what you could under the circumstances. Not everyone needs to go full martyr.

It is so true. I've done it, not out of ego, but out of passion and belief that it was the right thing, and I've paid the price physically and mentally for it.

I respect and honor this man for what he did. RIP Allan McDonald, and thank you for what you left behind.

This quote from the article helped me, right here, right now:

--- excerpt ---

"What we should remember about Al McDonald [is] he would often stress his laws of the seven R's," Maire says. "It was always, always do the right thing, for the right reason at the right time with the right people. [And] you will have no regrets for the rest of your life."

--- end excerpt ---

When people say that it is not just about about what you do, or why you do it, but who you do it with, it is so easy to gloss over that sometimes, it's about doing your part with the right people.

For me, this served as a reminder of high value.