Recently, I heard an excellent presentation that included components dealing with the attributes of integrity. Integrity . . . a word that has been misused, misapplied, and, in some cases, maligned in our modern culture. What is it? And, does it really matter that we possess this characteristic?
Integrity is the adherence to moral and ethical1 principles; soundness of moral character; honesty.2
1 pertaining to or dealing with morals or the principles of morality; pertaining to right and wrong in conduct
2 the quality or fact of being honest; uprightness and fairness, truthfulness, sincerity, or frankness, freedom from deceit or fraud
Sounds good, doesn’t it? These words bring comfort to us when a person we are working with or receiving support from tells us he/she is a person of integrity, one who will deal with us with honesty, free from deceit or fraud.
Who I am – the REAL me – is the outward expression (my daily actions) of my character that integrates the values of my heart. Os Guinness explains this in his book When No One Sees. Our character is developed in private but revealed in public. Oscar Wilde apply states it this way, “Every little action of the common day makes or unmakes character . . . what one has done in the secret chamber [will one day] cry aloud from the housetop.”
INTEGRITY . . . don’t let it become an illusive attribute.