Ethos Speech

December 12, 2010

Integrity Makes the World Go Round

     Miguel Angel Ruiz said, “Be impeccable with your word. Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love.”

     How many of you lie about something at least once a day? How many of you just said that you don’t but just lied because you know you do? Many people can no longer be counted on to speak the truth and to say what they really mean. It is very hard now days to find people who speak the truth in all that they say and can be counted on for good quality advice and answers. A study that had been published in the Journal of Basic and Applied Psychology, found that 60 percent of people had lied at least once during a 10-minute conversation that was held. We as humans are social beings. We need to belong. That means saying anything and doing anything we need to to belong with those we want to belong to. It’s sad but true. If 60 percent of people lied at least once within a 10 minute conversation, it makes you think how many people are lying to you throughout the entire day, even throughout your entire life. What can you believe? What can you live by when so many people aren’t truthful and don’t care about the power their words have on someone?

     When it’s hard to find honest people in the world, others close up and don’t trust people like they used to. All of this is weakening bonds with family, friends, neighbors and other people we interact with on a day to day basis. My freshman year of high school was filled with everything but integrity. I lied to my dad all the time and didn’t care how my actions would make him feel. Needless to say, it weakened our relationship in the end and our trust was broken.

     To keep those we hold dear in our lives and to live a life free of regret- integrity is the key. Honest and caring people, people who can be counted on and who keep true on their word are those people who are giving good examples and keeping our world from becoming a chaotic place where people are terrified to interact with one another.

      Showing integrity on a day to day basis is what will keep our world moving nicely and what will keep us all together in the end.