Lloyd Melnick (formerly a Director at PokerStars on the Isle of Man) has written a very good blog post here. He makes the point that you tell how good a person is in tough times – in good times, anyone can survive. But when the going gets tough? That’s when the tough get going:
The underlying principle is that it is easy to do the right thing when everything is going well but you can understand a person’s true character in how they act in difficult times. Many people seem great when they do not have cash flow issues, when their company is hitting or exceeding its targets, etc. They will often talk about win-win relationships and seem great to work with.
Most of these people, however, show their true colors when the cost of doing good becomes very significant. If doing the appropriate action takes money out of their pocket, hampers their career, potentially risks new investment, makes them look weak, etc., many will take the path of least resistance and do things you would not expect of them…
How to know who is good and who is bad
