Ethical leadership is a leadership style that emphasizes the needs of others over personal gain and is influenced by ethical principles and values. Ethical leadership involves upholding moral principles, being accountable for actions, and decision-making that is based on ethical awareness. Ethical leaders place the needs of employees, customers, and communities ahead of their needs, and motivate team members to follow their example. The ethical leadership style provides six principles used to inform decision-making: respect, accountability, service, honesty, justice, and community. Ethical leaders are role models who inspire a culture of trust and ethical behavior. Some of the characteristics of ethical leaders include: integrity, accountability, honesty, respect, and altruism. Ethical leaders set the standard and example of ethical behavior, empowering employees to mimic those standards, resulting in the ability of influencing ethical behavior in hundreds or even thousands of other individuals.