What is integrity? It is doing the right thing no matter where or when. Without question, integrity is the culmination of all characteristic traits. If you don’t have integrity, you don’t have anything.
Recently, I was driving down the highway where I live on Cape Cod when I approached the on ramp where there is a construction zone. The on ramp has a stop sign for traffic entering the highway. As I was driving in the right hand lane doing about 65 a marked police car blew right threw the stop sign and entered the highway causing me to jam on my brakes and have to switch lanes quickly causing a dangerous situation.
Let’s take a look at this again so you get the picture. I am minding my own business traveling down the highway at a safe speed. A marked police car blows through a stop sign causing a dangerous situation and I have to jam my brakes and immediately switch lanes to avoid an accident.
I am a nice guy . . . usually!
I don’t care if you are the Pope driving down the road. If I have a problem with your driving because you are causing a dangerous situation for other drivers I am going to say something and I did. I pull up next to the cops and point to them and my head telling them to pay attention. Well, both windows were shut. They couldn’t hear me, but they could obviously see that I was ripping.
They were laughing at me and both gentleman gave me the middle finger. At this point, I was pissed. So, I back off and count to ten to digest this and exercise my 4T’s – TAKE TIME TO THINK.
I then call the number on their police car and ask to speak to the Chief or the Captain. I get the Captain and explain exactly what just happened. The Captain then calls me the next day and says that the two Lieutenant’s on their police force denied giving me the finger.
I am calm at this point and let everything go, until the Captain said that his two Lieutenant’s denied giving me the finger. Now, I am upset that two police officers, whom the Captain said were good guys lied. They blatantly lied about what they did. This prompted me to do my video in this blog.
What does this have to do with integrity?
Everything if you ask me. Here are two decorated gentleman that are police force. They have been trusted to protect the University of Massachusetts – Dartmouth Campus. They are fathers of children, coaches, teachers, doctors, church goers, and every day people we meet on the streets. The problem is that being a person of integrity isn’t a sometimes part of one’s character. Integrity is how you live your life. It’s how you live your life on Monday – Friday, Saturday and Sunday as well. It’s how you live your life as a professional and how you live your life when you are with your friends.
These gentleman were representing their law enforcement careers away from their jurisdiction but because they were in a marked cruiser they thought they were above the law. Then to lie about what happened is to disrespect their profession, the University in which they stand for, their families, and they gave a bad name to their department.
Nobody is perfect and I don’t hold anybody to such a standard. What I do expect is that you don’t lie. They did something they shouldn’t have done out of the moment of instinct. I accept that. Take responsibility for your actions. Take the slap on the hand. Admit that you made a mistake. Don’t lie.
Every morning you have to look at yourself in the mirror and the only thing that looks back is your character. Only you know how you feel when you look in the mirror. Conduct yourself professionally and make good choices every day. You will make mistakes. I do and every time I do, I am called on it. For example, I am one of the officers for my local Harley Davidson Owners Group and I have a director who is a very different leader than I am, but I have the utmost respect for him. He is one of the best leaders I have ever had the opportunity of working with. I’ll tell you what though, he keeps me honest and when I make a poor decision or act in a way that I shouldn’t, he is calling me on it right away and I am proud to say that I have learned a lot as a result. Never have I lied. I have always listened and taken it to heart to become a better person and strong man of character.
Integrity is every day!
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Jeff Yalden is a teen expert and a teen motivational speaker. For more information about Jeff Yalden please visit www.JeffYalden.com.
