10 Life Changing Lessons – Nr. 7 - Integrity

A recent incident that made world headlines in cricket, may help to answer the question:

Which one of the 10 Life Changing Lessons are the most important?

The rivalry between the South African and Australian cricket teams is well known. Everyone was very excited about the upcoming test series of 2018. The two teams matched up very well and it was the contest between the fast bowlers of the two teams that caught everyone’s attention. After the second of four matches, the two teams were equally matched, having won one match each.

The third match in Cape Town would become one of the most notorious contests of all time and the reasoning behind this: a blatant lack of integrity. Cameron Bancroft was caught on live TV tampering with the ball and to make matters worse, it was done with the consent of his captain, Steven Smith. The result was the banning of the captain, the vice-captain, David Warner and Bancroft, as well as the resigning of the head coach Darren Lehmann. The incident left cricket, the so called “game of gentlemen”, in disrepute.

With this in mind, let’s get back to the question about which one of the lessons are the most important in the life of a business person? Maybe the following two quotes will help to give an answer:

“With integrity, you have nothing to fear, since you have nothing to hide. With integrity, you will do the right thing, so you will have no guilt. Zig Ziglar If you don’t have integrity, you have nothing. You can’t buy it. You can have all the money in the world, but if you are not a moral and ethical person, you really have nothing. Henry Kravis

In general people will agree on the importance of integrity in business. The challenge however is to make it practical. How does one do that?

Unashamedly Ethical is an international campaign that challenges people to a lifestyle of ethics, values and clean living. The three pillars of the campaign are:

• Sign the Personal commitment to ethics, values and clean living. Do it here: http://unashamedlyethical.com/registration-individual/

• You get listed on the Directory. Download the Mobile App for:

  • Android phones here – http://bit.ly/2qNU0fb

  • Apple iPhone here – http://apple.co/2swURlS

• Report unethical behaviour to the independent Ombudsman. Do it here: http://unashamedlyethical.com/ombudsman/

Lesson number 8 in the series on Life Changing Lessons, will focus on business ethics. look out for the article coming to you soon.