The Appeal of a Person with Integrity

The integrity of men is to be measured by their conduct, not by their professions.

Integrity, people profess it but their actions are opposite of what they say. Some people we meet and that space we share with them is enough. When the time comes to part, you don’t look forward to the next encounter. Nor do you take the time out to make sure that another encounter occurs. And then there are people that you meet or people you know that you want to share experiences and space with them all the time. You can’t wait to get together again.

What makes a person’s friendship desirable? Is it true that opposites attract or is it more that birds of a feather flock together?

One thing is certain, people with integrity are more appealing and tend to create long-lasting friendships.

No matter how educated, talented, rich or cool you believe you are, how you treat people ultimately tells all. Integrity is everything.

The dictionary defines integrity as “the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles”. Studies show that people with integrity are kind. Words like honesty, trustworthy, decent, ethical are other characteristics of people with integrity.

Integrity is choosing your thoughts and actions based on values rather than personal gain.

When you speak of “strong moral principles and values”, it can vary. The moral fiber of our society has changed significantly in the last 50 years. Back then people measured character with this invisible element called a moral compass. A moral compass was your ability to judge right and wrong and then act accordingly. How do people know what is right or wrong? In the United States, a country heavily influenced by religion taught about morals and ethical conduct and many looked to the Ten Commandments for guidance. Upstanding citizens displayed moral and ethical conduct. But that was fifty years ago. Gradually, things have changed. Today, many wonder if the moral compass has been destroyed says, Dr. Gregg Henriques in the Psychology Today post, Finding Our Moral Compass.

“Instead of a moral compass, people have been given enormous freedom to construct their own lives and make their own moral decisions.”

I believe that its for this very reason that a person with integrity is appealing and tend to develop long-lasting relationships. Our society has created multiple ways to communicate without being present. We text, email, tweet, snapchat, quick message; but, engaging in the same space has decreased. Its very hard to get to know the deep values of people that you rarely physically interact with. We trust less but we have hundreds of friends on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

Today, we must learn ways to identify people of integrity across the many communication methods we use.

Image is who people think we are; integrity is what we really are.

We live in a world with fake news which leaves us feeling that honesty and values are a thing of the past.

Here are some ways to identify people of integrity.

1. They live by values. People that live by values are aware that character is important and that there are values that should be followed. Values determine how they will interact with you and make decisions.

2. They recognize the moral compass. People with integrity based their decisions on morals and ethical values. They are honest in their approach and relations with others. They don’t measure a friendship by what they can gain from that person.

3. They are dependable. Have you ever been in need of a ride or some favor from a friend and they didn’t deliver. Do you have friends where you are always there for support but when it’s your turn, they become ghosts?

A person of integrity live by principles that says you can count on me. They understand that “a friend in need is a friend indeed”. You don’t have to put an APB (all points bulletin) out on them. If it’s in their power to help, they will.

Their word is bond.

4. They are trustworthy. People of integrity are trustworthy and not out to get over on you. Five behaviors of a person who is worthy of your trust: