This is something that may be less common nowadays
but probably more important than ever. Let's talk about
How to Demonstrate Honesty and Integrity at Work.
Let's start with some definitions. First, honesty.
Speaking the truth. It may be a little more than that, though.
I think it's also about being true. You know, when you're true to something,
you're committed to it. You pay attention to the principles, the
underlying values that drive it. So, it's more than just
speaking the truth. It's really being true
to the principles that are in play. That's how I'm going to define honesty.
Integrity is the match between my words
and my manifestations. Think about what that means. You know
what your words are. It's whatever you're saying. And if you're speaking the truth,
that puts you in a very good position to have
integrity which is the match between my words and my manifestations.
Or what shows up in the world. So, if I were to say for example,
"Honey, I'll be home by 8 o'clock." Those are my words, right? Now, what's my
manifestation? My manifestation is what time
reads on the clock when I show up at home.
If my words match my manifestation, that's integrity. So, let's go with those
2 definitions as we talk about how we can
implement this at work. It's really hard to be perfectly
honest because there's little things that get in the way. Now, if there's been
a pattern of not being honest, it's going to take a
little bit of practice to change that pattern. As we
begin to practice a new pattern, let's try this to get us started:
Learn to use your pause button. Did you know that you have one? Push the
pause button. It's located right here. And when you press that pause button,
that will remind you, just chill for a minute. Before you say
anything, pause. There's an important thing that
we're going to do during the pause. I'll share that with you in just a minute.
It takes a little practice to push that pause button.
If you forget where it is, just look in the mirror. There's there's a little
pause button right there. Okay? It's actually called your philtrum.
Press it. Quiet down, pause for just a minute. That
will give you the time that you need to intentionally take this a different
direction because we're going to practice
honesty and integrity in what we're about to say.
While you're paused, ask yourself 3 questions before you say whatever
it is you were going to say. Question number 1, is it true?
Remember honesty is speaking the truth and it's also
being true to principle. "Is it true what i'm about to say?" Question number
2, "Is it useful?" Some things that are true
are not particularly useful. Have you noticed this? And this has to do
with being true to principle. Kindness for example
is a principle that might supersede whatever it is you are going to say that
might be true. But it's not particularly useful. The
third question, "Is it kind?"
It might even be useful but if it's not kind,
you're not being true to your principles. So, to really practice
honesty and integrity, pause, ask the 3 questions --Is it true?
Is it useful? Is it kind? If it passes that
test, then it's very likely that this is a good thing for you to say.
You won't even know that if you haven't paused. So, try that.
As we're more careful about what we actually say,
it's easier to hit the integrity part where that's the match between our words
and our manifestations. So, the last point that I want to make
about this is say what you mean, mean what you say,
do what you say you will do when you said you do it. It's that simple.
Do what you said you would do. If you commit to it,
show up. Do what it is that you said that you would do
and do it by when you said you would do it.
That's pretty simple. I think i learned that from my parents,
for sure from my grandparents. This is something that I think we need to
instill more in our own children. What would
happen in our world if we all showed up with more honesty
and integrity? Can you imagine what that would feel like?
Where is it going to start? I think it has to start with each one of us.
Let's try those tips and see if we can make a difference.
None of us are perfect. You probably noticed some things that you could
improve on. Yeah, welcome to the club. Me too. In fact,
let's help each other out with this. I don't know if you were aware of the
many resources that are available to you that can help you live with more
honesty and integrity. Come on over to Live On Purpose Central
where we've put together a variety of resources
just for you to accomplish that. Join a community of people who are also
concerned about making that kind of a difference
in our world. I hope to see you there soon.