May - personal integrity

Inspirational quotes
· Be more concerned with your character than with your reputation, because your character is what you really are, while your reputation is merely what others think you are. – John Wooden
· No trumpets sound when the important decisions of our life are made. Destiny is made known silently. - Agnes De Mille
· “Character is doing the right thing when nobody's looking. There are too many people who think that the only thing that's right is to get by, and the only thing that's wrong is to get caught.” - J.C. Watts

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Marcia's monthly motivational message – personal integrity

Are you a person of integrity? Read on and I’ll ask you again later.

In my opinion, someone of integrity keeps their word no matter what the cost. And make no mistake; it will cost you, either in time, money and sometimes even “friends”.

They return phone calls when their voicemail messages say they will. They keep commitments. They do the right thing even when it’s unpopular, e.g. not gossiping about people, walking away from conversations where sexist, racist talk may be happening. You get the picture.

The other day, I heard someone say, “well, when I see *Jill here, then I’ll believe it”. I agreed with her. In this situation, it was absolutely true and it got me thinking. If two people who don’t know Jill all that well think this, then she’s done a really bad job of maintaining her integrity. If she’s known to break her word, then she’s done it more than just a couple of times! [*Jill is not her real name]

I don’t know about you but I don’t want to be known for being unreliable and uncommitted. I think the reason is because we are too quick to agree to do things without thinking the consequences through clearly.

If you have done this and you need to get out of a commitment, ask the person to release you. Don’t adopt a passive-aggressive approach and just not pitch up. This is not integrity! What’s the worse that can happen? They say no. And if the answer is no, then do what you said you’d do cheerfully but learn your lesson for next time and think before you speak.

This month, think carefully before you speak and say things like… I’ll phone you later, you’ll have it tomorrow, yes, sure I’ll help out.

Have a great character-building month!

(c) Marcia Francois
Do you want to use this article? You may, as long as you include this complete bio with it: Marcia Francois, the Take Charge coach and professional organiser, coaches people to reach their goals and maximise their potential. She publishes the popular “Take charge of your life” monthly ezine. If you're ready to finally live your dream life, get your FREE subscription now at http://www.takechargesolutions.org/