Integrity is Important

Trust me on this

We all know that, if we blatantly lie, people who hear us tell those lies will not trust us. But we don’t always think about the things we say that we intend to do, but then don’t.

“I’ll get that to you today.”

“I’ll talk to her about it.”

“I’ll take care of that.”

Often we give ourselves a pass if we say things like this, but then don’t do it in time—or if we forget altogether—because we had the INTENTION of doing it when we said it.

The problem is, if people are depending on us as leaders, we need to do what we say we will do, or our people learn they can’t count on us. So, if you make a statement like “I’ll call to the client about it,” then we really need to make sure to do it. Add it to your calendar, or set an alarm on your phone. Put a Post-it® note on the side of your monitor. Write it on your hand, if you have to. But make sure you don’t drop the ball.

I recommend an “under-promise and over-deliver” mentality when it comes to commitments. Give yourself some wiggle-room, in case unexpected things distract you from the activity, but with a consideration for the time-sensitive implications any delay might have on the people expecting things from you. And remember that the secret to time-management isn’t the efficient handling of what is on your plate; it’s keeping most non-essential things off your plate in the first place. But if you say, “I’ll do it,” then you’ve gotta do it, or your people will learn they can’t trust you to do anything else.

(Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash)