There are cheaters all around us.
VW diesel emissions. Russia Olympian doping. Subprime mortgage lenders. Lance Armstrong. Fantasy football.
Why do people cheat? I think there are hundreds of reasons. To win. To gain unfair advantage. To make more money. To look good.
Self-serving players in our midst don’t always cheat – but cheating is always about the cheater winning and others losing.
What our nations, companies, communities, and families need today is unrelenting integrity.
I define unrelenting integrity as the daily demonstration of kindly honoring one’s service commitments to others.
It’s about holding oneself accountable for one’s actions and promises. One shall not compromise one’s values, no matter what.
And it starts with each of us. We cannot wait for “someone else” or “everyone else” to embrace integrity as a core value, as a way of living and interacting each day. Each of us just need to embrace it and live it.
The good news is demonstrating unrelenting integrity isn’t complex. There is no club to join. There are no monthly dues required. There are no meetings to attend.
There is simply you, making a bold commitment to make your promises clearly and keep your promises daily.
How might it work? It would probably involve behaviors like these: Every day, you hold yourself accountable for your commitments and actions. You attack problems and processes – not people. You accept responsibility and promptly apologize if you jeopardize trust or respect. You align your daily plans, decisions, and actions with your purpose and values, in service to others.
That “in service to others” piece is important. You could have strong integrity to your own, selfish gains! I don’t think that’s what this world needs of us inhabitants right now. The world needs a strong network of trusted players who work with – not against – others.
Many of us make promises without fully committing to the time, energy, and investment those promises require. Tiny HR’s 2015 Employee Engagement Report found that the single largest productivity killer in the workplace is co-workers’ lack of follow through and communication. 35 percent of respondents reported this issue!
Our integrity is maintained with every kept promise. We can’t be casual about keeping our commitments or we’ll miss an important deadline. If we miss a deadline, our integrity will take a big hit.
If we live in unrelenting integrity, we might create a trend – in our work team, among our friends, in our neighborhoods – where others embrace unrelenting integrity in their lives. Getting others to embrace unrelenting integrity is beyond our control . . . but if we can move the needle a bit that direction, greater trust, respect, and dignity might occur.
How do we eat this “integrity” elephant? One bite, one kept promise, at a time.
All the time.
What do you think about living with “unrelenting integrity”? What have I missed? In what ways can you increase your commitment to your commitments? Share your insights on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
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