Integrity -- Has It Lost Its Meaning?

From www.Dictionary.com, the word "integrity" means:

1.	adherence to moral and ethical principles; soundness of moral character; honesty.

2.	the state of being whole, entire, or undiminished: to preserve the integrity of the empire.

3.	a sound, unimpaired, or perfect condition: the integrity of a ship's hull.

Looking at the first definition only and then PAYING ATTENTION to several online businesses, I have to ask, has the definition changed?

For example, one online business recently promoted that there were only X number of a physical product available so "get it before we run out".

Subsequent emails trying to get us to buy and showing how many more were sold (plus other calls the business owner was on pitching the product), added up to almost double the original "get 'em before we're sold out" quantity.

The issue for me -- aside from the blatant untruths -- is that this business owner, like so many others out there, preaches and teaches the concept of integrity.  It's become a case of "do what I say, not what I do".

This is just one example, I could easily cite many more.

You could ask, so who's being hurt by the above scenario...particularly if it's a good product/service/whatever and has the potential to help many people.

My answer is simple: All of us. 

After all, there are better, more honest ways of doing business and if someone is willing to lie (let's stop dancing and call it what it is) about something as small as "how many widgets" they have to sell, what about the bigger things?

I'd love to hear your thoughts as I have some pretty strong opinions around this topic and I know they may not resonate with everyone.

Comments

[Luanna Rodham]

If you're honest in your business, your blessed more in the end!

[Giulietta Nardone]

Sandra,

If we're the real life enhancing deal, we won't need to use the word integrity when describing our biz. We will be too busy practicing it!

Thx,

G.

[Vicki Voisin/The Paralegal Mentor]

Sandra...Good points! If we don't have our integrity, what do we have? We must mean what we say...and say what we mean. If we pitch a deal, it has to be truthful; if we give a deadline, it should be kept. Our purpose shouldn't be to drive would-be customers into a frenzy. Being the 'real deal'should be our goal. Vicki

[Peggie]

Sandra
This is a very special topic for me and I'm so glad you raised it. I am often torn between my frustration with these "pitches" and my desire to simply live as though I'm not affected by them. The trouble is, like so many other fields and professions, the squeaky wheels get the grease - and they set the standard for what MOST people think of when they think of a particular work (coaching and info products for instance - sort of like the days of the "used car salesman")

That makes it ever more important for us to define our own place of integrity and then stand in it - no matter what the situation. It also means figuratively changing the channel and NOT subscribing to, checking out or otherwise encouraging those whose integrity resonates at a different frequency than our own.

This is not about judging or me being right and someone else being wrong. But once I've set up my integrity meter on anything, I must clean house and remove all links and recommendations that are not at my same frequency - otherwise, I'm lumped in with them.

Peggie

[seo reseller]

I knew the meaning of Integrity. It is all about honesty and loyalty. And their meaning can't be changed

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