Integrity:
The state of being whole, honest, upright, sincere, with uncompromising adherence to moral and ethical principles.

We tend to assume that a person has integrity until they do something that demonstrates that they don’t. Once integrity is compromised it is extremely difficult to regain. Compromised integrity is like an avalanche; it gains momentum as it tumbles to the ground, destroying all before it and the foundation of trust that you worked to build.

Success magazine founder Dr. Orison Swett Marden once posed the notion about the trust that we have in our world, how we take it for granted, and what it would be like to be without it:

“Suppose we lived in a world where natural things would lie and deceive us as a man would; a world where the mountains, the sea, the forests, and the rivers were all shams; where the earth looks rich and fruitful, would mock us by refusing harvest in return for our seed; where what appears like a beautiful landscape would prove only a deceptive mirage; where gravitation could not be depended upon; where the planets would not keep in their orbits; where the atoms were not true to the laws within them.”

How could we exist in such a world? Who and what could we trust? Could we trust anything or anyone at all?

There is no substitute for truthfulness and honesty; they are the foundation upon which your career will be built, and your work will be judged. Many a politician has assumed that a few less-than-truthful statements would be quickly forgotten—and paid a high price for making that assumption. You do not want to be known in your career or business as someone who believes that truth is but a lie undiscovered.

As you go forward in your career, the book of business that you develop must be built on the solid foundation of truth and honesty. You always want to be regarded as a person who can be trusted to deliver what you promise, a person of unquestioned integrity. It will be a cornerstone that will bear the weight of all your dealings with customers in the future. It will continually bring you a great number of referrals from past customers who value you as a person who keeps a promise.

If, you are ever tempted to be less than truthful in your dealings with others remember the following: Without truth, your career will be a constant process of rebuilding relationships. You will not enjoy the fruits of an endless supply of referrals, because your relationships have not been built upon the trust and honesty that your customers and co-workers deserve.

Dale and Ben Midgley
Co-Founders
The Golden Circle of Business©

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