we're going to answer the question what
is integrity
and as usual i'll look at this from the
standpoint of leadership
so let's get into it
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after looking into this a bit integrity
has two parts
and the first way is the way most of us
understand it part a
is the quality of being honest having
strong moral principles moral
uprightness
this is about honesty good character and
being trustworthy
this aspect of integrity usually becomes
visible when we are honest tell the
truth and have good character in
difficult
situations the second part is even more
interesting to me
part b is the state of being whole and
undivided this is about our internal
unity
and coherence in other words if you've
ever been
conflicted about your actions and
decisions and thoughts
when it came to your beliefs and morals
that may
be a signal that you're not feeling
whole and undivided inside
if you feel confused or torn about where
you stand that's another signal
that you have some internal unity and
coherence issues you haven't settled it
yet
and really the presence or absence of
integrity on the inside
like this is where it starts our inner
world drives our outward actions
so let's dig deeper into this and we'll
start on the inside
first and foremost integrity is an
internal quality
that people possess that others may not
see as nelson mandela once said
the first thing is to be honest with
yourself
this is a prerequisite to integrity
people who can't do an honest
self-reflection are going to get stuck
and it will be hard for them to grow
and mature i can't remember where i
first
heard this example but i was once
reading about a guy
who made a personal commitment to not
ever take anything that wasn't his no
matter how
valuable it was even if no one was
watching
so i believe the example he used was
well what if one day he was walking
down an empty beach and he saw a rolex
watch in the sand he said he wouldn't
pick it up
that's an example of internal unity and
coherence
nobody's watching and he's not
rationalizing
or fooling himself so that he somehow
gets to keep that rolex watch he knows
who he is and what he's made of and he's
not going to take something that's not
his i just read
the other day about an employee at a
goodwill location who found
42 000 in cash that was
wrapped up in some donated sweaters as
the employee was sorting through
the donated clothes she felt what she
thought was a book
inside the clothing when she opened it
up she saw
these massive stacks of cash but she
didn't hesitate
she instantly told her manager and they
tracked down the person
who donated those clothes and they
returned the money
in an interview she said it would never
have occurred to her to keep the money
i'm sure it felt great for her to know
who she was
it feels freeing and powerful to have
that
internal consistency rather than
rationalizing and wrestling with moral
decisions
and it's really easy to admire her
because her moral compass was
whole and undivided and by the way in
return the person who
donated the clothes gave her a thousand
dollars as a gift for being honest but
she didn't know that that was going to
happen ahead of time
oprah winfrey once repeated an
old-fashioned sentiment
that i agree with she said real
integrity is doing the right thing
knowing that nobody is going to know
whether or not
you did it that's integrity
second as an extension of what we've
said
other people may or may not eventually
notice
your integrity on the outside and when
they notice it could
help you but it could also cost you
nikki gumbel is an english anglican
priest but he started out
as a lawyer and he tells lots of stories
about the old
days as a lawyer one story he tells is
about another
lawyer he knows in england and one day
this young mid-level lawyer was in an
office
with the boss the top partner at the
firm
the phone rang and as the young lawyer
reached for it
the boss said to him if that's for me
tell them i'm not here
so the young lawyer answered the phone
and he said yes
he's here just a moment and he handed
the phone
to his boss his boss glared at him
face turned red he took the phone
had a brief conversation and he hung up
and he turned
and was about to tear into that young
lawyer
but the young lawyer spoke first he said
to his boss i will
never lie for you and
i will never lie to you
that's integrity his integrity is being
tested
and some people might say well it's just
a a little white lie
but a person with a strong internal
commitment
to honesty won't do that and the boss by
the way was so impressed that he put
that young
lawyer in charge of lots of important
cases and
even asked him to be his personal
attorney but the key here
is that the young leader didn't know
that it would work out like that
he was sticking his neck out there and
it could have cost him
and even in the best of cases it may
take a long time
before anybody recognizes that you have
integrity
because it's mainly on the inside and
only gets publicly tested
in really visible ways a small
percentage of the time
but we don't strive to have integrity to
impress others we do it
because can you guess say it with me
it's the right
thing to do here are a few practical
takeaways
integrity is a choice it's a commitment
that you make to be
honest trustworthy and base your life
and decisions on good morals integrity
often means
doing the right thing even if it means
putting your own
benefits at risk question of the day
do you know anybody personally that has
integrity
share your examples below i would love
to read them until next time god bless
and i will see you soon