INTEGRITY – NOT EVERYONE’S CUP OF TEA

Integrity is not new word to my readers. Especially to my colleagues working in the corporate world – some or other day, you will hear in detail about this word.

Let me narrate a real incidence that happened with me. There is a small milk dairy just opposite to my home. Every day I observe many people including children as a customer at this diary. Yesterday evening I saw one child inadvertently spilling over milk that she bought while going back to home. She lost all milk that she bought just few steps away from my home. She started crying while her elder sister who was accompanying her started scolding her. I know these poor girls since both of them regularly accompany their parent who sale vegetables in my locality. Looking at their genuine problem, I offered help to reimburse the cost of buying another quantity of same milk. Her sister initially refused taking the help but finally I convinced her.

Today while I was enjoying the evening with family, I heard the voice of that girl at my residence. I was surprised. She came to refund the small amount of money that she took from me. She was literally insisting me to take back the money. I was really in dilemma. While I did not narrate this incidence to my family (and I took this risk even with my better half), how to handle her request of taking back the money was also challenge. Finally on my father’s request, she kept that money with herself. While that amount was small; same can be material one for that girl. What I liked about this incidence was her integrity. Though she took help while in need, she remembered to pay back the same when she was capable of doing the same. Though she was not financially strong, her values did not allow to enjoy that money but to refund.

In corporate life, most of the companies have ‘Integrity’ as their value. Being a proud citizen of this country we are supposed to follow this value while dealing with any matter. Integrity is not something that we follow when everyone is watching; it is value to be followed when nobody is observing.

In my limited working experience of 15 years, I have observed many leaders or managers (even at CXO level) giving long lecture about this word as if they only coined this word. However when it comes to following the path of ‘Integrity’, they fail sometimes miserably. Integrity is not everyone can follow. It is habit of rich people - rich in their education; rich in their principles; rich in their action. There are many examples - many employees earning good amount as a salary do fail in their integrity while claiming small amount as reimbursement for office expenses, tax avoidance, unnecessarily spending company’s funds for self gain and so on. While these employees may be 100% correct in completing their role, when it comes to following the values such examples are not encouraging.

The extension of this value equally applies to us in our day to day life. We take help from many in our day to day life – like relatives, friends, family members etc. While there is no second thought as whether to take help or not; it is equally important that when we become strong, we give back to this society. The way of giving back can be anything but that value should remain integral to us.

While I do not want myself giving any lecture on this critical subject to my readers, I do wish that each and every citizen of this country (world) following this important value in day to day of their life.

Author: CA Hemraj S Joshi

Views are personal.