In order to place our trust in another one of the things we tend to do is weigh up the level of integrity we perceive. It’s a fascinating word, ‘integrity’, in that two definitions are offered by dictionaries – the first being wholeness and consistency and the second, as morally strong and honest.
We might argue that at one level we are always in integrity in that we are, in any given moment, whole and consistent whether that means we are consistently lying or consistently aggressive or consistently optimistic or consistently a person of ‘high’ morals.
And therein lies the problem when we use this word – we need to be more specific, clearer about what we mean. It is of course one of those qualities that we know when we see it, or more specifically feel it. We can feel when someone is holding both an honest and morally strong core alongside seeking, we might say striving, to bring all parts of themselves into alignment with that core.
Human nature is flawed, we know that. The strength of integrity lies not in whether a person has flaws but in the level of intention and striving we see in their actions to become whole and consistent, informed by that strong centre dedicated to openness and honesty – firstly with themselves and only then with others.