Browse Integrity

I suspect that we all like to think we have integrity, but what exactly does this mean? Integrity usually means that a person is trustworthy, reliable and has a set of values that make them respected by their friends and colleagues. More literally, integrity means a consistent combination of attributes that work together. These are related by what we call values. First, our values should result in actions that result in “good” things; second, people like to have a consistent response. Both of these make up integrity.

Spirituality is the new frontier for integrity-driven leadership. Employees, the workplace environment and economics used to drive the operation of a business; today the workforce and their consumers or clients are looking for something more. A number of years ago Vince Lombardi, past head coach of the Green Bay Packers said, “Leadership is based on a spiritual quality; the power to inspire, the power to inspire others to follow.” He had discovered the secret everyone is sea

Like me many people committed to supporting the fair trade industry aren't aware of the ethical issues around cotton production. Issues such as land use, irrigation, exploitation of workers and the use of pesticides. Conventional cotton is literally destroying the environment and affecting the health and well being of millions of workers throught the world. With fantastic alternatives like bamboo and hemp now readily available its time for all us ethical consumers to vote wit

Integrity is a value, like persistence, courage, and industriousness. Even more than that, it is the value that guarantees all the other values. You are a good person to the degree to which you live your life consistently with the highest values that you espouse. Integrity is the quality that locks in your values and causes you to live consistently with them.n nIntegrity is the foundation of character, and character development is one of the most important activities you can

Over-Managed and Under-LednFormer head of the Strategic Air Command, General Jack Chain, continually emphasized, “You lead people and manage things.” Yet how often do leaders confuse or abuse this principle, with the all-too-common result being that such leaders wind up treating people like things that need to be managed rather than individuals who need to be motivated by competent leadership?nnWe live in a world that, with rare exception, rewards managers but avo

I once read the story of a successful business man who was looking for a successor to take over his business. He decided to go about it a bit differently. Instead of choosing one of his children or one of the directors to take over the business he called all the executives in his company together. He gave each one of them a seed and gave them order to plant the seed, water it, and come back one year later with what they have grown from the seed he gave them. He then would jud

I was on the learning team this week, and I thought you'd benefit from what happened. SuccessNet has been doing business on the Internet for over 12 years. And during that time, we've come to be known as one of the most trusted sources for personal and professional growth on the Web. We're proud of the fact that people trust us for our information and for how we do business. But over the past few days, I've had a chance to see just how skeptical people can be and how seemingl

Do you know anybody that you feel is particularly engaging and lively? Take a moment to picture that person in your mind. What is it about that person that you find most attractive? He or she may have a charming voice and a great laugh, but it is also very likely that you find their face very expressive. That person is probably quick to smile and laugh and seems to always have a twinkle in their eye. A face that never shows any emotion, and never smiles is not very appealing.

My coaching client Sophia had explored a business opportunity with a franchising organization and was very excited to tell me about it. It combined many of the activities that she found motivating; it would enable her to work from home, set her own schedule, work in a people job and use her communication skills. It seemed great. She could see herself doing all those things and being happy. Sofia contacted them to arrange attending their open house and was dismayed to find th

Lemons to Lemonade kids charity is a hub for innovative ideas that help in fundraising for school kids or donation to charity. The online stop Lemons to Lemonade teaches in a fun way, all the kids, ways in which they could contribute for children charity in their own small way. The company runs on the basic premise that helping others is the main essence of life and this should be inculcated right from a very young age. So, a fun idea of making lemonade has been used to come

What do you stand for? I challenge you to take a long, hard look at your life. Are you happy with your life? Are you being everything you have always imagined you could be? Do you have everything you've ever wanted to have? Even though you might have accomplished or acquired certain things, I would wager that you aren't as satisfied as you thought you would be. It's a very strange phenomenon when we go after something we really want in life, and then once we have achieved it

The image of a company plays a very important role to establish a direct impact for driving in adequate business for the enterprise and consequently return customers to its doors. Businesses can also be benefited from this fact by realizing its customers that trusts them and their services offered to make them potential future prospects. This is which why it becomes very important for the companies to strive to build up a reliable and reputable image in front of its customers

A powerful exercise is to look at what and how we blame. The faults we find in others are often indicators of what we need to look at in ourselves. If we are willing, we can use what we are upset about as a reflection to help us identify and own some aspect of ourselves that we are denying or have not recognized before.nnWe are responsible for our impact. Others are responsible for their impact. The more of our impact we recognize and take responsibility for, the more empower

In the world of business today, people are searching for a standard that is at a level above the normal greed, arrogance, undisciplined practices that are prevalent on Wall Street and in the shop around the corner today. I believe the Bible is filled with words of wisdom that can serve as a ...

When you work with and support others, do you experience: Feeling drained? Do you desire them to "get better"? Do you take on one more client because there is no one else? Are you attached to them making progress? When I first heard the expressio Divinely Selfish- I experienced a lot of critical thoughts arising regarding its legitimacy in the world of healing and Practitioners of Healing Modalities. As I traveled further in my own journey I realized that there was an impor

N: Non-negotiable When you give a client a surprise bonus, you’re over-delivering and practically guaranteeing customer satisfaction. A satisfied customer is essential. Don’t hold a debate with yourself about whether you should reward a customer. Make the reward non-negotiable. When it comes to clients, you can’t afford to be cheap. You can’t afford not to give them surprise bonuses. The only way to earn more profits is to invest in your clients. Reward them for doing busin

There are many cheaters in our world nowadays. They maybe enjoying the current scenario but in the end they will have their fate unfold also. My classmate in high school is always on top of the list in the class. I admire her and look up to her because she seems to have the grasp of all the lessons in all our subjects. She graduated top of the class and proudly received her honor and medals. Everyone admired her except her best friend who was second of her on the list. I thou

The people who we surround ourselves with have a strong gravitational pull on our lives. We tend to act like they act and do things like they do things. I have heard several people say, over the years, that they started smoking because they were hanging out with people who smoked. I know people who have started exercising and getting healthier because the people they were spending time with did this as well. As I understood this observation I became very aware of who was in m

This subject has been debated and discussed time after time. It appears that many have walked away from the discussion with some sense of uncertainty on what to do. I will attempt to bring clarity to this subject. After Christ’s resurrection he gave his disciples specific instructions in ...

“Integrity is telling myself the truth. And honesty is telling the truth to other people.” (Inspirational quote taken with permission from http://tinybuddha.com) Spencer Johnson Many years ago, when I was in high school chemistry lab, I was assigned to do a litmus test to determine where various chemicals fell on the continuum from acidic to alkaline or other base composition. I now view that litmus test as a metaphor for learning to discern how to live in harmonious alig

Let's be honest: life can be a roller coaster ride at times. We all are subject to it one way or another – we don't get to choose what happens to us. However, by controlling our response to these events, we can create an environment around us that makes it easier to achieve our goals. Here's how you can make that happen. Express gratitude everyday In the run of any given day, things out of our control can happen to us that can threaten our ability to enjoy life in the long

You might think that it's a no-brainer why one should live an honest life. But it's apparent to me that a life of integrity is the exception rather than the rule. How many people do you know who are honest all the time? nnnWe could make a case about the morality and the "rightness" of living honestly. Religious leaders have been advocating this for thousands of years. It's doubtful that even they could provide a true model of integrity.nnI believe in the moral and ethical val

I belong to quite a few groups, attend and teach at many workshops, conferences and meetings. In turn, I meet a lot of people and most of the time it is customary to exchange our business cards. The question I have for you is why would you exchange business cards with someone if you had no intention or desire to connect with that person again? Does it make you feel important? Are you just being polite? Everyone else is doing it so why not you too? I am so amazed at the number

“The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in men who are truthful.” -Proverbs 12:22, New International VersionnnIn the past several years, we have seen the devastating effects of dishonest business leaders at Enron, WorldCom, Xerox, Qwest, Tyco, ImClone, Anderson, and others. They fraudulently gained short-term profits but in the end lost everything, with many going to prison. A phrase from the Shinto religion states, “If you plot and connive to deceive men, you may

“Business is simple. Make some stuff and sell it for more than it cost you. There’s nothing more to it than that except for a few million details.”—president of International Harvester I had to eat a little humble pie recently. And I want to share why, because I think it illustrates a critical lesson in how easy it can be for clients—or potential clients—to lose confidence in you. We had asked our readers to complete a short survey to obtain some feedback on the b

Although it feels like New Years was weeks ago, we are still very much in the conversation of "New Year, New You!" Even though every January we tend to engage in a dialogue about what we can do to revamp or upgrade our lives, each year we see a few new concepts or practices added to the "what's trending now" lists. In the past few years, the concept of mindfulness or being mindful has become a crucial part of the self-care conversation. From the boardroom to the kindergarten

Determining what should be your business practices and how you set policies is something that we need be very careful of. We should approach our research and advice we follow with a little extra caution and with an objective eye. As we look at what is happening in the global economy, we can ...

People ask our opinions all the time. If you are a leader or manager, you are asked and expected to give honest feedback on performance to your employees and collegues. Providing feedback can make us feel vulnerable.n nThere is a hidden dynamic that is usually in play. When providing performance feedback, we often focus on the facts of "what happened". In reality, there is often a hidden conversation that involves feelings but is rarely openly discussed (especially in a work

In an earlier article, we explained how web hosting reviews identify web hosting companies by the services they offer. So if a web host offers ASP technology, they say it’s an ASP hosting company. With that in mind, in this two-part series we’ve laid out many of the most common types of web hosting services you’ll read about in the web hosting reviews you peruse. Last time we started at ASP and got as far as FrontPage. Now we’ll finish the alphabet. If the web hosting

Integrity First. It's core value #1 of the U.S. Air Force... embraced by our leadership, taught in our training programs, and a symbol of the commitment and character of the men and women serving our country.nnI learned a valuable lesson about the true meaning of integrity after only serving several years in the Air Force. It wasn't on a combat mission flying an F-16. It was during a training sortie I flew as a brand new instructor pilot, and I learned it flying solo.nnIt was

Happy almost-Thanksgiving! If you are like me, I'm sure that you cannot believe the holidays are already upon us. What happened to Fall? Although the song says "Oh, there's no place like home for the holidays," despite what we see in Hallmark Channel's Five Night Thanksgiving Movie Event, the fact is that most of us experience a sense of dread as we envision our upcoming holiday gatherings. Feelings of resistance, anxiety, and resignation start to bubble up as we anticipate t

Happy New Year! I have been thinking a lot about this first newsletter of 2018. In a perfect world, I might be using this post to share with you some profound, uplifting, spiritual experience that I had ringing in the New Year and setting the tone for the upcoming year, but the fact is I cannot. I rang in the New Year experiencing emotions that ranged from horrified, shocked, and speechless to feeling victimized. I was at what I thought was going to be a sweet get-together wh

In the past few weeks I have been fixated on the news and stories surrounding the world of USA Gymnastics. Like most of us, I have looked on with horror, disbelief, and heartbreak as well as a profound sense of admiration for the 156 women and girls - "the army of survivors" - who shared their victim impact statements and testified against former USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar. I also cheered when Judge Aquilina sentenced Nassar to 40 to 175 years in prison and so matter-

In my last blog post, I wrote about a situation which has been causing me a lot of heartache and how, despite all of the tools and wisdom that I have as a life coach and teacher of transformation, it has been hard for me to find a sustained sense of peace. I shared how after going to healers, therapists, and doing lots of deep work around my core wounds and projections, I was so grateful to read Debbie Ford’s new book Your Holiness: Discover the Light Within because it remi

If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters.rn -- Alan K. Simpson rnNot only personally, but this quote is also germane on a professional front. The only difference is, one has to foster integrity in business sectors and enterprises, popularly known as business integration now. This article will walk you through the nitty gritty of the enterprise business integration and it can be an adept solution for enterprises.rn Enterpri

Drip! Drop! Drip! Drop! Drip! Drop! Everyday for a week, when Jack looked out his Delaware window, the same dreary sight greeted him . . . Grey clouds, grey skies, grey rain . . . Drip! Drop! Drip! Drop! Drip! Drop! . . . then in the midst of the drip! drop! came a ding dong! The doorbell! It was a telegram delivery . . . . . . a telegram whose contents would alter Jack’s life, and the lives of thousands of teenagers everywhere. It read: "FOR SALE IN TAMPA BAY, FLORIDA . .

For the past ten days I have been traveling outside of the United States. We had a packed itinerary and my intention was to disconnect and just be where I was with the person I was with. Halfway into my trip, the Parkland shooting occurred. Since these horrific acts of mass violence have unfortunately become part of our daily life, I realize that I've actually developed a pattern of how I digest these heartbreaking events. I tend to watch hour after hour of commentary, making

As the holidays kick into high gear, I am thankful and a bit overwhelmed as I fill in my calendar. There are parties to attend, dinners to organize, presents to buy, decorations to hang, and visits from out-of-towners, friends, and family to prepare for. As I anticipate the month to come, it feels like my to-do list is infused with a sense of accumulation. Although I look forward to the abundance and merriment of delighting in the decadence of December, I also feel a strong s

One of the ways to use subtle mind tactics and the power of the human emotive matrix is to increase your credibility and this article will tell you how you can do this within the first few moments of meeting someone. The tricks of the trade are actually being used quite subconsciously by people all over the world and you will find them in board rooms and stages all over the world. Whether or not they know they are using these techniques is something completely different and t

With the demand of flash analytics and flash applications, it has become a necessity to understand the basics and to have a proper knowledge of the flash technology. Most of the website owners want to understand the flash applications because it plays a vital role in attracting the online traffic on their website and in turn they are able to generate business and profit. Getting the knowledge of flash applications and analytics may not be a daunting task, however, to get the

Some commentators have called 2008 "the moment of truth election." The phrase seems to expand in all directions. It's the moment of truth for an out of control financial system and hapless home owners in over their heads. It's the moment of truth for America's addiction to Middle East oil, and for a vast consumer machine that has plunged the average American into crushing debt. It's the moment of truth for two wars abroad.rn rnBut as dire as those things sound, Pres. Obama's

Any company who follows certain rules and discipline will be able to withstand the competition and obviously it can value its deliverables. Such companies receive the respect also, as they complete their task in time. If they do not follow such discipline, certainly they will start collapsing. That is the reason all designers and artists of website logos make you also follow the terms and conditions of their companies. These website logo design companies can then provide the

As many of you know, this past week, my first book, The Integrity Advantage, was released. It was a pinnacle moment filled with a smorgasbord of emotions. It quickly turned into a somewhat surreal experience watching this baby being birthed out into the world, seeing people holding the book in their hands, and knowing that they would soon be reading my words. Many people have asked me why I committed to this concept of integrity as a way of life a few years ago. I was recentl

Can you imagine that in just a few days it will be August?rnHave you gotten around to doing all the things that you said you would do this summer?rnHave you had that “perfect” summer day? I am big believer in creating perfect days! Although it tends to happen more when I am on vacation or weekends, a few times a month I religiously wake up and declare “Let’s have a perfect day.” Now I know that some people tend to shudder at the word “perfect” since being a perf

COMMIT COMMIT! December 21st, 1998 – a brisk winter day in Saudi Arabia. I was stationed on my first combat deployment, flying missions enforcing the Iraqi southern no-fly zone. I was scheduled to take off on only the fourth combat sortie of my career, inexperienced and quite nervous. It was a mission I’ll never forget. I was flying that day with my flight lead Lt Col “Hos” Hyatt, the commander of the 79th Fighter Squadron Tigers. Our “2 ship” of F-16’s were cha

As I sit to write this blog post, it is hard to find the words. I, like all of you, have been shaken by the course of events in the world over this past year and especially these past months and days. As Jimmy Kimmel said, "It feels like someone has opened up the door to Hell!" As we endure the extremes when it comes to divisiveness, disaster, devastation, and horrific acts of mass destruction, it has left people feeling saddened, anxious, afraid, helpless, and hopeless. I, l

Lately I have been thinking a lot about the concept of entitlement -- that feeling so many of us have that we are owed something, that we have rights or deserve something to be the way we think it should be. Think of the times you have thought or had someone say to you: • “I deserve to be treated a certain way, given certain things, or taken care of in a particular manner, because I am your child, parent, or friend.”rn• “You owe me because I was there for you.”rnâ

Last Saturday when I was taking a bootcamp class at my gym, I noticed this adorable twenty-something standing next to me. Although I have seen her before, I have never talked to her. Truth is, she generally works out every morning at 6 AM, whereas I stumble in at 7 AM. I have in the past overheard some of her conversations. They generally revolve around what she is eating and her asking advice from others since she is "starving herself and not losing any more weight." Having

Do you remember when one of the big office supply stores developed the big red "Easy” button as a reminder to "keep things easy at work"? Years ago, one of my fellow staff members at The Ford Institute started bringing a big red "Easy" button to all of the in-person workshops and trainings we did. He would keep it out at the staff table at the back of the workshop room. It was actually a perfect reminder for all of us that an invitation for transformation exists in every mo

When I recently attended a bootcamp class at my gym, I noticed this adorable twenty-something standing next to me. Although I have seen her before, I have never talked to her. Truth is, she generally works out every morning at 6 AM, whereas I stumble in at 7 AM. I have in the past overheard some of her conversations. They generally revolve around what she is eating and her asking advice from others since she is “starving herself and not losing any more weight.” Having bee