I define integrity as the consistent adherence to the moral and ethical code which one believes to be right. Integrity is an encompassing word, often connoting honesty, bravery, reliability, responsibility… the list goes on. I want to discuss a little maxim that has most likely been rung into your ear time and time again, and contains what I believe to be the essence of personal integrity: “Do your best.” In some shape or form, we often hold somewhat of an arrogant view on familiar sayings regarding such a cliché; we simply disregard them. So I’ll add another integral part (get it?) to make it more interesting and less cliché for you and me: “Do your best to be your best”. By best I mean you. So do “Your you to be your you.” Make sense? I will give a quick example. Captain Jack Sparrow is best at not being Jason Bourne, but at being Captain Jack Sparrow. There is no other way. Captain Jack Sparrow in any other way, shape, or form is unthinkable. Story time.

I met an ambitious young woman for the first time the other day at work. We’d been assigned to the same project with another young fellow, so I decided to invite them both to my house for dinner to “break the ice”. For the sake of length and time, we shall only discuss the young woman. This young woman was neatly put together, a straining effort to be so. Every movement from the self conscientious, but perfectly measured stride walk to her annunciate-every- syllable manner of speaking was programmed to perform her most entertaining view of human perfection. She even ate her sandwich, folded her napkins, and smiled at, of course, the “appropriate” moments, with an air of attempted robotic professionalism. You get the picture. Not to say she was materialistic, haughty, or “plastic”, but excruciatingly apathetic and Queen Elizabeth proper given the setting and nature of the creative project at hand. I laughed at her a lot.

As you may have been able to figure out, I love this woman dearly, and if she were to ever read this would laugh along with you and proceed with an equally comical description of her first impression of me (I have told her of this first impression, but not that I have written about it). Our project nevertheless, was well received, but only AFTER the palpitations and unnecessary concern over projecting a certain image that comes with meeting a person for the first time.

I’ve found in my life experience that the sooner I am myself in any given situation, the sooner good things happen to me and everybody else around me. The lesson is that integrity and truthfulness, I find, is rarely applied to our interpersonal relations, but mostly to our work. Frankly, I’ve found authentic personal relations are imperative to my most successful, enjoyable work. If there is authenticity, integrity, to our relations then it is these relationships that push you, set you straight without fear of hurting your feelings, and support you. The only way these types of relationships have evolved in my life, are by first, figuring myself out. Even if interaction starts out rocky, like the story above, if you are yourself everybody’ll eventually come around to a gorgeous, authentic friendship, or you’ll save time, learning quickly to avoid each other like the plague. Like falling dominoes, as you do your best to be your best where f(best)= you, your best gets better, you get better friends, better relationships, and better at stuff, better at life because its foundation is true! It’s you! I have found, in short, that integrity begins with you. When you solve for you, then lovely personal relationships evolve. Soon after, I discover that everything you touch begins to permeate authenticity, creativity, and brilliance! Even if no one but you and your friends think so. This is my first blog and I shall be back with more on the humdrum which is my life. INTEGRITY! Love you all. Peacepeace.

jcagon