INTEGRITY
Integrity comes from your own set of core values wherein your decisions may not always make sense to a stranger. Integrity might sometimes make people ask and wonder your view points and decision-making skills.
Learning to live with yourself is more or less similar to learning how to live with others. The important thing is doing the right thing despite other factors that might be present or existing such as doing what is more convenient for us, or doing what we think is easy. What matters is that it is what is right even when other people might think of us as silly or stupid.
This is living in a seamless life. Everything that you do, your thoughts, actions, feelings and emotions and your set of values are all congruent with each other which is of course, not that easy nor simple to achieve.
I too, have acted in a seamless way a couple of times in my life. I once recently visited my hometown to attend the burial of my late cousin who had an accident in Texas. When I reached my city, I could not help but moan about the poor conditions of the roads! Imagine, they reconstructed almost all of the roads at the same time! It was so muddy when it rained and it was so dusty when the sun was up, either way it was something that will ruin a happy mood for sure.
The way we respond to others whom we do not like or hate are often what we need to get an overview of the type of integrity that we possess. When you buy a pirated CD because you know that “they will earn as much money if I didn’t anyways” is another example of seamless integrity. A flexible integrity allows us to react to situations or individuals who may not be pleasing to us in a calm and composed manner.
Integrity does not need recognition. When you do what is right even when you know that you will not be given due recognition is integrity. Sometimes, we let the rules dictate our actions. Just like when you meet deadlines because you know you will receive praises from your superiors. Doing something just because you will get noticed is not at all what integrity is about. Integrity shines most when no malice or ulterior motive is involved.
It should be at the center of our lives and not merely a luxury. A life of integrity will test and challenge you in ways that might not all the time conform to the dictates of society. But, integrity too will be responsible in giving you inner peace and satisfaction.
Integrity is not an easy topic, nor is it an easy thing to do. We have our own shares of failures and failing out, but when you have integrity, you will be able to see the sunshine after the rain, the smile after the outburst of tears, and the joys of laughter after the sorrows.