Everyone has things that they hold in high regard and that keep them going on a daily basis. It could be hard work, family, being healthy, leisure time, fun. These in turn create values that support our motivations and reasons for how we fill our days. For example, if you hold hard work in high regard and it's likely you value one or all of discipline, loyalty or responsibility. Generally, when we hold these kinds of values, success comes from being in integrity with them and doing what it takes each day to live into them. Doing so consistently usually leads to success!
Another area we see integrity is being honest with others, from family to our employers, everyone expects us to be truthful with them. This is a key to healthy relationships both at home and at work. One of the most important concepts I've learned in my years of corporate work is to "do what you say your going to do, when you said you're going to do it". I've done my best to live into this for two decades and it has served me well. Some coworkers have done well with this and others have struggled, probably not even realizing it because they aren't even aware of the concept.
One more type of integrity is often overlooked and that is integrity with ourselves. How often have you said "I want to lose 5 lbs." and then gone on to munch down a back of potato chips? Or have you said, "I need to get in better shape, I'm going to start going to the gym" only to sit back down and click on the TV.
Why is it so easy to let ourselves off the hook when we have success with our integrity in other areas? There's a paradigm that says "how we do one thing is how we do everything" so if we aren't being honest and holding ourselves accountable for the things we want, desire, or need, how does that show up and reflect into the rest of our lives. In my experience, things are usually not where I want them to be. If I'm not eating the healthy way I want to be, I'm feeling low on energy, and that causes me to not be able to give my best to my clients or family. But when I am eating right, I have all kinds of energy and can give those counting on me my best efforts.
So how do we make it inevitable that we are putting our best into every area of our lives. We focus intently on building trust with ourselves. We make an all out effort to stay present to and to address any instances in any area where we break promises or commitments to ourselves. We need to check ourselves, whenever we make a commitment and really stop to think, am I ready, willing, and able to complete this? If not, we're making things up and just wasting our time.
Using the previous example, "I want to lose 5 lbs.", how by saying that can you fully live into doing what it takes? By stopping to think for a minute, what do I have to give up that I cherish, to achieve this? Maybe it's late night snacking, maybe it's measuring the creamer in your coffee vs. just dumping it in, or is it committing to a non-negotiable gym schedule? Whatever it is, don't just say things and not have a plan or your just wasting time.
We have to hold ourselves to a higher standard if we're going to achieve in all the areas we want to succeed. We have to stop and think about the time we'll be wasting by not fully committing to personal obligations. Additionally, building trust in yourself will bring trust from others and that will help you expedite your success because we are not meant to do it alone.
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