Winning with Integrity or Being a Good Neighbor?

A few days back, my husband noticed our neighbor’s roof turbine was no longer on their roof. Instead, it had landed in our bushes with a windstorm. They were out of town for a few nights. With thunderstorms in the forecast, Gregg was concerned about the damage rain might create.

Instead of ignoring the situation, he thought of a solution. While he didn’t have the skills or materials to patch the roof, he and their son-in-law placed a blowup kid-sized swimming pool underneath to collect water. Thank goodness Gregg noticed the problem and acted. The hole in the roof was over their furnace and could have caused damage with all the storms that occurred this week.

Being a good neighbor shouldn’t be a big deal. The neighbors were thankful. However, their traveling companions were surprised at Gregg’s efforts. Why? Our neighbors have helped us. We were brought up to look out for others.

Winning with Integrity or Wintegrity®️means:

✔️Acting in an ethical manner no matter what. You do the right thing, even when no one is watching.
✔️Promoting the interests for all involved including your own. You keep your word or speak up.
✔️Making the best “right” decisions to build trust and respect. You deliver what you promise and make choices that benefit you long-term.
✔️Creating solutions with the expectation that winning outcomes are possible for all involved.
✔️Considering resources involved and other stakeholders although they are not present or involved in the immediate negotiation, deal, or transaction. You honor deals and agreements, even if walking away or ignoring a situation would be easier.

❓Up to this point in your life, whose guidance has helped you the most as you navigate right from wrong?
❓Where have you seen someone act in an ethical matter, even when no one would discover this decision?
❓Which of your neighbors has pleasantly surprised you?

This has been a busy month with Mother’s Day, Memorial Day, and graduations. Think of the work and integrity that relate to all of those situations. There are mothers who devote their lives to raising children with good values. You have soldiers who gave their lives while honoring a commitment to keep our country free. You have teachers who dedicated their time and effort to educating students despite the lack of resources or salary. And, you have graduates who chose to maintain their integrity. They did the work, and are now graduating and going onto new things.

When you win with integrity, you build character. You also build durable relationships that help you later in all your dealings.