here was an advertisement poster on the New York subway with the headline “Use Your Sick Days Wisely” featuring smiling mother and daughter on an amusement park ride. What message does this ad convey? Tell your boss that you are sick, and then have a great time with your kids in our amusement park! The loss of integrity spread from a simple lying about sick days to a giant corporate embezzlements and nationwide corruptions. For businesses, integrity is not very attractive word, since it may not result in immediate money making. Yet great leaders are those who have their integrity intact. Jesus, Martin Luther King, Jr, Abraham Lincoln, are among those who are known for their integrity. Integrity is uniquely concerned with individual wholeness and conscience, which is the quality of being true to oneself. The word integrity in its root relates to integrity and integration, which speak of unity and wholeness. Although it may not be easy, but in the long term integrity will pay a bountiful price for us: trust from those we lead, reputation, customer loyalty, retention of employees, and quality decision making.
- Do what you say. This is a simple and practical definition of integrity. Keep your promises, meet the deadlines, deliver the product, do your job. So, give careful considerations before you make any commitments.
- Taking responsibility. The main rule is “Responsibility begins with me.” Stop blaming circumstances or other people as the cause of our problems. Take your responsibility to either change or accept things that you don’t like that sometimes do happen.
- Living within your means. Financial integrity requires us to live within our means and refuse excessive spending to create untrue image of ourselves.
- Respect others. Treating others with respect, even when they don’t always please us or live up to our expectations. Because our standard is subjective, and we can get the best of others when we live in a positive and affirming atmosphere.
- Reflect. When you do something, ask yourself: “Is this who I am?”
- Define the rules. Rules and regulations will help you and your people to establish integrity within the organization.
Filed under: Articles, Leadership | Tagged: Abraham Lincoln, Jesus, Jr, Leadership, Martin Luther King
