The truth shall set you free, people. – LISA MARTIN
Sure, it’s entirely possible to achieve wealth and status by traveling some dark alleys, but you won’t have respect or trust. And you may not end your life with satisfaction.
[Tweet “Leaders are, first and foremost, people of character.”]
They are trusted by people across all levels of the organizations they work for. Because of this, they can easily rally support for their ideas and deliver big results.
How’s your moral compass? Read the following statements and be real with yourself…which ones are true for you?
- I bend the truth to make situations more comfortable for myself and others.
- I sometimes commit to things I don’t plan to fulfill to just to get someone off my back.
- I sometimes take more credit than I deserve
- I sometimes make colleagues look bad.
- I share information ‘strategically’ to increase the odds of getting what I want.
- I’ve been known to bend a lot of rules.
- I sometimes invent excuses to get a deadline extended.
If any of these statements are true for you, fear not. It’s actually shockingly simple to live with more integrity. It’s as basic as starting to hold yourself to a higher standard.
People will start to notice you’re someone with strong character. More importantly, so will you.
Leadership Development: You know that slightly icky feeling you get when you’re saying or doing something out of integrity? Listen to that. Stop and change your course. Eventually it becomes your first instinct to act from your highest integrity.
If you liked this blog post, you’ll love my book Lead: 6 Skills to Be a RockStar Leader.
Lisa Martin has made it her mission to help companies keep and cultivate leaders. She’s the creator of the Lead + Live Better leadership programs, author of five books, including the bestselling Briefcase Moms, and she is a seasoned speaker, facilitator and executive coach.