How much integrity do you have? A friend of mine told me that he had to drive his wife back to the grocery store, after buying groceries, because they forgot to charge her for an item that was in their groceries. That is integrity. The week before he had to drive her back to the store, because they had charged her twice for a single item.
True integrity works both ways. Not just when it may be for your advantage. Now he has his wife check the receipt before they drive away from the store.
John Maxwell has said, “Image is what people think we are; integrity is what we really are.” Integrity is just who we are. It is not something you can turn on and off. Either you have it or you don’t.
The integrity of an organization can never be higher than the integrity of the leader. In fact, the integrity of an organization is normally a reflection of the leader’s personal integrity. Because if a leader lacks integrity, people with high integrity would not be working for them very long. The opposite is true also. If the leader has high integrity, then he probably would not accept a team that lacked integrity.
How would you compare your level of integrity with those around you? How is the integrity of your organization? If there is any lesson we should learn, it is “Success will come and go, but integrity is forever.” No job is ever worth your integrity.
If you are not careful, your integrity can erode. If you are exposed to an environment that lacks integrity for a long period of time, you will be affected. Integrity must be preserved.
Being aware of when you are tempted to cut corners is important. People that lack a high level of integrity do not recognize when they are cutting corners. They are convinced it is okay, because that is how something has been done by others, or in the past.
As Shannon Alder said, “The important thing isn’t what other people think you are; it’s who you are.”
Only you can guard your integrity. Always doing the right thing takes awareness, energy, and an internal moral compass. Are you equipped to protect yourself?