What is Integrity?

 

Talking to a customer yesterday, he mentioned that you can’t trust people these days. On a similar note, a friend posted on social media that she had a situation with a gentleman who also did not trust others. This got me thinking about not only honesty, but also integrity. It seems more and more people are under the impression that everyone is out to harm them in one way or another. We have become so sure that a deal will go wrong, we will be taken advantage of, or basically hurt, that we go into any situation on the defense.

This is understandable since many are out there with only themselves and their gain in mind. They deliver empty promises and in some cases right out lie. It makes me wonder, what does integrity mean today and does it still exist? I have worked for big companies that speak of integrity, but when it came down to it, they would put themselves first over employees and even customers as if these were mere pawns to their actual goal of greed.

Miriam-Webster defines integrity as a “firm adherence to a code of especially moral or artistic values:  incorruptibility.” I have also heard it is doing what is right even when no one is looking.  This seems straight forward, but has this become an outdated concept? Have we become a society where it is “eat or be eaten” so to speak? Is our greed and lack of empathy so strong that we feel we don’t have to keep our word?

I and a few others I know don’t feel this is the case. We believe that the only way to do business or to live life for that matter is with integrity. It’s a part of taking pride in one’s self and your work. It’s also the first block in building relationships with others. Yet it becomes more and more frustrating trying to convince others that this is the case, especially when they are out to prove you are lying from the get go. I personally don’t plan to give up, but I do wonder how we can change the mindset of today’s society in relation to honesty, empathy and integrity.

So, my question to you is what does integrity mean? Do you think it’s still common today? Are there still people out there that live by it? How do we make it a key factor again in life and business?

Working Online From Home

Thoughts? To me, it seems like a viable way to work with out worrying about commuting from place to place. It saves time, stress and money by avoiding the rush hour traffic and crazy drivers out there. Also, it would allow some one to have a schedule that works around their family and home. However, it seems it is a competitive place to find a decent honest living out of it. Here I will list some of the different outlets I am aware of that offer you to work online from home and make a decent amount of money if you can break your way in.

1. Freelance Writing– Many sites offer a chance to write for them articles as a way to make some extra cash by freelancing. A quick google search will provide you with sites that are offering jobs.  One site I have come across over and over in different articles is Freelancer . This seems like a straight forward site. You pay to get what is called bids, that you can use towards different posted jobs listed on the site. Starting out you get a free 30 days of their professional membership, which seems to offer you an edge when applying for these jobs. I myself have not used Freelancer, but I have seen it mentioned a few times in other online money making articles.Therefore I leave it to you to try it out.
2. Blogging-Blogging is a great way to get your thoughts and ideas out there. It allows you to share your creativity with others while making a bit of change doing something you enjoy. Ways to make money blogging include including Google AdSense, creating memberships through various outlets, and even product reviews. Let’s take a moment to look at each of these.
   1. Google AdSense-Google will pay you for putting ads on your site and generating traffic through those ads. Problem I see with it is you have to have quite a bit of traffic coming into your site to begin with before you can acquire enough clicks to receive payment. From what I have found you get paid per every 1,000 clicks on the ad. If this is correct, a clarification would be great as I could not find much more.
   2. Memberships and Subscriptions-This is something I have just learned about. You can create a way for viewers to receive special content and privileges by agreeing to pay monthly.
   3. Product Reviews-Some companies will pay you to try out their products and review them on your blog. Again, you would need to have quite a large following to gain the notice of major companies and for them to consider using your blog to get their products out to the public.
3. Vlogs and Streaming– This has become a popular venue for bloggers with Facebook Live, YouTube, Periscope, and Twitch. Pretty much these outlets are very similar to conventional blogging. Again, it is required to get a large audience to make a living with it.

I would like to reiterate that these are just my thoughts and opinions based on what I have read and seen through out the internet. These are just some of the venues out there, as I am sure there are many more. If anyone know of any others or has experienced any of this money making options, feel free to share in the comments.