Show It, Don't Say It

If you polled a group of people and asked them what they value most, at the top of many list would be family, or health. If they focused on values, they’d say things like honesty and trust. We all know what we are supposed to say, but it’s what we do that matters.

If you truly value your health but routinely inhale Big Macs and Snickers bars, can you really say that health is an important value? If you cheat on your taxes and your spouse, is honesty really of paramount importance. Integrity is about living your values and being honest to yourself. The opposite of integrity is hypocrisy.

So I ask you, not just what do you value or what do you deem most important? I ask, how do your actions illustrate your values? How do you put your values into practice?

Integrity is putting your values in action. Without action, you don’t have values, you have pretty ideas. They might look good on paper and sound even better when they flow effortlessly out of your mouth but unless you are living them, nothing else really matters.

Integrity is about being honest with yourself about your reality – who you really are. Who are you and how do your actions and behaviors reflect that?

“Integrity is telling myself the truth. And honesty is telling the truth to other people.” Spencer Johnson