The Little Things That Build Integrity
When we think of integrity we think of the big things, like avoiding intimate relationships with a client. However, there are many little circumstances where we have the opportunity to demonstrate our integrity. The more you take those opportunities, the more people will trust you and want to work with you. Here’s an example.
A colleague of mine offered me the opportunity to take part in a business-building activity she was hosting. She gave me a price and I jumped in, knowing it was a sound investment. When she sent me an invoice, it was $2.00 less than she had quoted me. I had two options:
- Assume my colleague doesn’t mind if she gets $2.00 less and pay the invoice.
- Assume this was a mistake and ask her if she wants to re-invoice.
Now, I’ll admit, $2.00 is no big deal. When you think about it though, you know that if multiple people are paying $2.00 less, then it adds up. What do you think most people did? Yeah, they went ahead and paid the invoice without saying a word. What did I do? My values say to follow through on my promises. I had promised $2.00 more and I didn’t want to renig. So, I asked if she wanted to re-invoice. What was her response?
Thank you for the integrity.
Exactly!!! This one little act demonstrated that I have integrity. It was obvious to my colleague and she now has an immediate higher trust level in me. How do you think that’s going to play out when she’s thinking about referring a client? Will she think twice? No way! I’m trustworthy, I have integrity and I follow through on my promises. Three key ingredients for anyone who wants to refer.
What’s the moral of the story? Listen to your values to stay in integrity. You know what the right thing is. Even if no one else would do it, do it anyway. It will pay off in HUGE integrity points.
What are some other small places we can look for integrity?
PS – She knew she’d made the mistake and didn’t mind that we were all paying $2.00 less. So, I still got to keep my $2.00.
