“Integrity quotient?”  What’s that?

I believe that my Integrity Quotient is more important than my intelligence quotient.  After all, intelligence quotient is based on some standardized test that has little to do with living a meaningful or worthwhile life.

On the other hand, my Integrity Quotient has to do with how I treat myself and others.  That, to me, is meaningful and worthwhile, as that will influence my current life, my karma, and all other lifetimes that I live.

I propose we consider a new definition for the term IQ.

IQ = Integrity Quotient.

Integrity has to do with wholeness – integration – how you feel inside yourself.  When we feel whole, we behave differently than when we feel fractured, disconnected, alienated, or lost and confused.

Integrity, to me, is not about some arbitrary moral code.

It’s about you and me

feeling whole inside ourselves.

When what we say and what we do is in alignment with our feelings, we are creating integration – wholeness – inside ourselves.

To achieve this, we have to take charge of our feelings, own our feelings, and take 100% responsibility for what we feel and what we do about what we feel.

I’m not advocating having a tantrum because you’re angry.  I’m not talking about saying and doing mean things because you aren’t getting your way.  I’m also not talking about using fear as an excuse for treating others with disrespect.

Having a high integrity quotient comes from loving, respecting, and honoring yourself and others.  It doesn’t come from some external moral code.

You have a high IQ – a high “Integrity Quotient” – when you are

• Loving yourself without judgment or limitation.
• Loving yourself so much that you love the whole world, too.
• Making commitments out of love and respect for others.
• Following through on the commitments you make.
• Making sure you communicate changes to all others involved when you have to cancel or rearrange a commitment,
• Doing a job well just because it matters to you that you did it well, not because of what someone else will think or say or believe about you.
• Speaking your truth from your heart – with kindness.
• Treating all others with respect.
• Doing what is right, even if it’s difficult.
• Doing what is right, even when no one else is looking or paying attention.  After you, you’re looking and paying attention, right?.

I’m sure this isn’t an exhaustive list.

So – what would you say is your IQ – Integrity Quotient?

I haven’t figured out a way to measure it, but I sure know when it’s high and when it’s low.