Got Integrity?

Photo by Richard Jaimes on Unsplash
    Integrity is one of the things that defines us and the kind of life we live. It’s something we sense and feel rather than think.  It comes from deep inside us which means that we have to develop the ability to listen to it.
     In a sense everything we experience in life is about how we view it and sense it. To over simplify we can view things from the perspective of the popular norm, or we can pause and reflect and come from something that is authentic within us.
    Anything that is a “knee-jerk” response is something not thought through.  It’s easier in some ways to just “go with the flow” and go along with a popular sentiment but it also stops of us living a life that feels meaningful for us.
    If we view life as something we just have to get through and follow to the end, that’s a pretty joy-less life.  But, if we view life as an adventure where we get to experience ourselves fully and experience the world fully that requires a whole different approach.
    Let’s say we chose the adventure view of life.  That means we have to develop a strong sense within us of what is appropriate for us and what is not.  What enlivens us and what doesn’t.  It is a stance that allows us to leave a legacy behind to empower others and it creates a world where the best of what is human is available.
    I have heard the argument - if everyone did what they wanted there would be chaos and selfishness.  But, what has happened when people follow their heart and come from their integrity, they want to do good for others and help create a world that works for everyone.  There is deep within every human a desire to help and when we allow ourselves to follow our passion we automatically want to give to others.  It’s when we suppress what is in our heart and force ourselves to follow the crowd then we have to extract the goodness that is missing from our life from others. We turn our buried love into hate. We become takers rather than givers.  We operate from fear rather than from joy. They are mutually exclusive.  We can choose love or fear.  Simple as that.  But that choice is powerful.  It has huge consequences for us and for others.
    It is our sense of integrity, of what is truly right for us and for others that makes the difference in the kind of world we experience and the kind of world we help create for others.  We each have a huge responsibility.  True there are 7.5 billion of us.  But as each of us stands in our integrity, stands what is best for all, we change the dynamics of the world.  It only takes 1% of the population to change it. So, every day you have a new opportunity to help create a world that is the best of what humans can be.  A world that is not a “pie in the sky” world, but a real one that brings out the best in each of us.  You have the power to  help make that happen.
Stand in your integrity. Stand in your truth. We need you.
My best to you,
Dianne J. Shaver, M.A.  Accountability Coach
www.entrepreneurmindworld.com