We all know it’s the little things that matter. It’s the little things that tell us whether or not we’re living and leading with integrity.
Far too often, it is easy to miss the signs of faulty integrity. Why? Because the small things we do will tell us whether or not we have integrity.
We all want to live with integrity. Not all of us do.
So, what do we need to do to ensure we’re living lives of integrity?
We have to watch for cracks…
Think about the foundation of a house. A house with a solid foundation will have a smooth foundation. The cement that was laid will be void of any cracks.
Our lives should be the same. We need to build a solid foundation of integrity.
We have to be on the lookout for cracks.
What Are Cracks In Our Integrity?
Scott Monty wrote that his personal observation is that there has been too much malfeasance, ineptitude, and misconduct—in short, hypocrisy—on the part of many leaders, companies and government officials.
He’s seen that there are cracks in many companies and levels of government.
But what cracks might we look out for? There are plenty.
Cracks in your thought life:
The cracks in your thought life are anything that draws you away from the absolute truth, not your truth. There’s a difference.
There is absolute truth. When we begin to falter on what is true and what we want to be true, cracks start to form in our lives.
We no longer live on a stable foundation. Instead, we have cracks that are expanding at an alarming rate.
Patch those cracks and fix the foundation. Seek out the absolute truth. Put away the sweets that make false truths seem real.
Cracks in your actions:
We can have cracks that form through our actions. John C. Maxwell once said that our ethical principles are not flexible. A little white lie is still a lie. Theft is theft, whether it’s $1, $1,000, or $1 million.
If you’re willing to flex your integrity for $1, there are cracks that need to be taken care of.
Work on yourself. Find out the reason you may think it’s okay to steal $1 but not $1,000. You’ll soon come to find that they’re the same thing.
Get real honest with yourself. Look for the cracks in your actions. There may be more than you expected.
Cracks in your decisions:
Your decisions may be considered a combination of your thoughts and actions. You must think about and act for your decisions to come to fruition.
What kind of things are you doing with your decisions? Are they the right choices? Or are you creating larger cracks in your integrity?
Look at your decisions. What are they saying about you?
Your decisions are what will indeed cause your foundation to crumble.
Cracks Are Deadly
Cracks in your integrity are deadly. They will slowly swallow you alive.
The more choices you make with integrity not in mind, the more cracks you’ll find in your life. You have to make the choice to live and lead with integrity.
If you don’t, those cracks will become more than cracks. They will become valleys that you cannot cross.
