Integrity in Business

Real integrity is doing the right thing, knowing that nobody's going to know whether you did it or not. - Oprah Winfrey

According to Steven Covey in the book Everyday Greatness integrity is the common denominator that sustains every other principle of everyday greatness. He states that without the foundation of integrity, all other principles are greatly diminished.

In a world of confused values business owners are tempted to take moral shortcuts to increase their profit margins. This may seem like a quick fix to a financial bind but in the long term it is a moral and ethical compromise.

Socrates stated that the way to gain a good reputation is to endeavour to be what you desire to appear. If you are wanting a good reputation in your chosen field of business, make sure you keep the moral high ground and maintain your own personal integrity in your business dealings. Make sure any staff you may have understand that any breaching of your business' code of ethics will be dealt with severely. (Make sure they know beforehand what that code of ethics is - even better, engage them in a staff workshop to develop the code of ethics for your business).

Taking shortcuts in business is never worth it, especially when it comes to the integrity of your business - just don't do it!