“Integrity without knowledge is weak and useless, and knowledge without integrity is dangerous and dreadful.” – Samuel Johnson
Integrity is a word we hear a lot in life. We see people that are in our lives who walk in it and people who don’t. We will often see that word on the walls of businesses, within their mission statements, etc. At Atlas, it was the first Core Value we adopted. But do organizations and individuals live up to that standard or is it just a word that looks good and sounds good, so they use it all the time? These are good questions and questions that every organization (and individual), should ask themselves on a regular basis.
Perhaps a better question to ask though is: What does INTEGRITY really mean?
Here’s a few definitions from Merriam-Webster:
1. adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty
2. the state of being whole, entire, undiminished
3. sound, unimpaired or perfect condition
To simplify this a bit, let’s put it in verbiage we understand: Integrity is doing the right thing, even when no one else is watching. I want to emphasize “when no one else is watching” because how easy is it to cut corners, or cheat a bit, because, “who’s going to know if I don’t say anything?” Well, maybe no one for a while, but eventually, those small little compromises catch up with us. Solomon says this in verse 2:15 from the bible: “It’s the little foxes that spoil the vines. Each time we compromise, it gets a little easier so that pretty soon, these little compromises become habits that we develop. These habits become governing practices that can lead to some pretty devastating consequences. Not the least of which is losing the faith and trust of others in your midst. Having a reputation of lacking integrity is pretty hard to overcome.”
Are you taking away from that verse in Solomon what I am? Compromised integrity can actually become a habit we adapt to!! That is scary to think about. But just like letting our diet get away from us (trust me, I could write about that for weeks). It sneaks up on us little by little, and before we know it, we are 10 pounds heavier! Compromising your integrity is no different. We start small, thinking not too much about it, and before we know it, we have built a foundation on unethical behavior. And well it may work in the short term, eventually it will catch up with us. And catch up hard!
Warren Buffett said: “You’re looking for three things generally in a person – intelligence, energy, and integrity. And if they don’t have the last one, don’t even bother with the first two. I tell them: Everyone here has the intelligence and energy; you wouldn’t be here otherwise. But the integrity is up to you. You weren’t born with it and you can’t learn it in school.”
To bring it home: Don’t be afraid to be vulnerable with your Team. If you make a mistake, say so and do all you can to fix it. Your people don’t expect you to be perfect. Do what is right, not what is easy, especially when no one else is looking!