If you watch the news or read the papers you might ask yourself; do people really know the meaning of integrity?
noun
- Strict adherence to moral and principles; uprightness.
- the quality or state of being whole and unimpaired.
Etymology: 15c: from Latin integritas wholeness.
Chambers 21st Century Dictionary
Integrity means having strong ethical or moral principles and doing your best to follow them at all times and also being able to admit to our mistakes. Here Dr Lynda Shaw explains how to make integrity one of your five a day.
Bring the meaning of integrity into your daily life
- Show integrity by being reliable. Be true to your word and always follow through with what you promise. The best way to do this is to be realistic with what you can commit to and honest about any obstacles that may occur and don’t give poor excuses. If you are someone who struggles with being organised, keep a diary or set yourself an alarm so you are on top of your plans and don’t let anyone down.
- Show integrity by being emotionally intelligent by understanding and being aware of our emotions and those of others and expressing them appropriately to form healthy relationships. If you have high emotional intelligence, you are likely to be able to have good self-awareness and self-regulation which will directly help build integrity.
- Show integrity by being honest and transparent. The part of the brain that controls these behaviours is known as the prefrontal cortex. Pay attention to how you react in pressured environments, as that’s when your integrity is most often tested. Being honest and transparent will result in long term trust in you, even if the short term is challenging.
- Show integrity by being humble. People with integrity always show a level of humanity, kindness and respect to others. Avoid the need to self-promote or take the credit for someone else’s work. Credit will come to you in other ways.
- Show integrity by being accountable. Being accountable means holding your hand up when you make mistakes and accepting the consequences that may ensue because of this. You will be more likely to be positively evaluated and respected by others.
If you liked Lynda’s breakdown of the meaning of integrity, you’ll find more content like this on our Relationships and dating channel.
About the Author / Lynda Shaw
Lynda is an international professional speaker and her expertise and energy led to receiving the esteemed Professional Speaking Award of Excellence in 2017; the highest accolade for UK professional speakers as chosen by their peers. Lynda has presented TEDx talks, written multiple articles for Forbes and appeared on several podcasts, radio and even TV. At the moment Lynda is President Elect for the Professional Speaking Association UK&I.
