Lead in the way you wish to be led

In my latest Business Brief article, I reflect on a couple that were instilled in me from a young age, which are: 

• Those who are honest in the small things, will be honest in the big things, 

• Integrity is doing the right thing when no one is watching. 

Though I paid little attention to such guidance back then, on reflection I recognise that there is much depth to these statements. The small, seemingly not-so-significant things we do in our lives are pretty significant. It’s from the small things that the big things emerge. As we practice honesty and integrity in the small spaces, we are building the foundation for honesty and integrity in the big spaces.  

In business, it is imperative to have high ethical standards in the big things and the small as well; our successes depend on it. As Robert Iger, CEO of the Walt Disney Company states with regard to integrity: ‘The way you do anything is the way you do everything.’  

There are different types of integrity: 

• Personal integrity is being authentic and true to oneself 

• Intellectual integrity is ensuring we are in pursuit of the truth 

• Moral integrity is holding fast to your values; and

• Ethical integrity is keeping the law and following the rules and regulations.  

Great leaders and great organisations are law-abiding and adhere to societal rules. But we cannot be content with adhering to ethical integrity alone, moral integrity has to be its partner. There are times when we may be following all the rules and procedures and doing the legally right thing, but it’s not enough. Our actions may be legal, but do they promote good, strong moral values? When our people can see that we have the moral courage to act with complete integrity, they will afford us the dedication and trust we desire. We, in turn, can demonstrate our commitment to them.  

It’s not always easy to do the right thing. This is why we need moral courage. Many things will threaten integrity; popularity, promotion, profit and comfort to name but a few. Moral courage is able to override such things and act with integrity.  

Many leaders will uphold integrity as a value of their organisation, but what does this really mean? If culture is a result of the values and behaviours we exhibit, then those values need to be explicitly outlined. Our values need to highlight what we want people to do. We want people to act with integrity, but what does this tangibly look like? It’s worth asking ourselves the question and giving people the answer. But one thing is for sure, people will see what integrity looks like when we, the leader, exhibit it.  

We must not forget that it is always the leader who sets the tone.  

We must lead in the way we wish to be led and the way we wish our people to live. If we want people to act with honesty and integrity, we also must act in this way. Integrity should underpin our organisations but that starts with the leader.