The phrase cuts deep because it challenges something we hold sacred: our sense of self and honor.

When we say “everyone has a price,” we’re not just talking about money. We’re acknowledging that humans are vulnerable—to desperation, to desire, to the primal need for safety, love, and power.

But here’s where it gets interesting: having a price isn’t always about compromise. Sometimes it’s about clarity.

Selling your house isn’t selling out. Negotiating your salary isn’t betraying yourself. These are transactions where you’ve defined your terms. You know what matters. The price reflects your needs, your goals, your reality. There’s integrity in that.

The danger comes when the price is hidden—even from ourselves. When we don’t realize we’re being bought until we’ve already been sold. When ambition becomes obsession. When loyalty shifts without us noticing. When we wake up one day and don’t recognize the person in the mirror.

Self-respect is the foundation here. It’s the ethical voice that speaks up when something feels wrong. Without it, any price seems reasonable. With it, some things become priceless and unacceptable.

So what’s the real question? Not whether you have a price, but whether you’ve consciously set it. Have you drawn your lines? Do you know which principles are negotiable and which aren’t?

What is your Yes and what is your No?

The cynical view says everyone can be bought. The naive view says no one can. The mature view? We all have our thresholds. The work is knowing them before we’re tested.

Because integrity isn’t about being unpurchasable. It’s about respecting yourself enough to know your price—and being brave enough to walk away when someone tries to pay it.

Thanks – Michael (he, him)

Please share this Daily with your tribes.
This also matters – Living Deliberately.

#2081