I've been meaning to post about this for some months now, and I don't know, children, babies, sleepless nights (from the baby not the business thankfully!) have meant that I haven't ever got round to it. But everywhere I look I see businesses operating with a lack of integrity, and that really gets me cross. So I thought I must share my thoughts with you and see if I'm being unreasonable!
Why is it that integrity is such a dirty word? And why do so many business people lie, frankly, about things in the hope that they'll get more business. Let me explain what I mean:
- The 'dragon' that made out he had huge Mayfair offices and a team of staff when in reality it was him working in the stationery cupboard in another large organisation's premises
- The business coach who emailed me offering me membership of his website which would give me access to over 250 articles that I could use on my blog, in my newsletters and sell on my website
- The web designer who talks about his in house marketeer when in reality he employs no such member of staff
And I've got no issue with people leaving things out to make themselves look better, but why lie about things? It's the lying that gets to me.
Call me old fashioned but I prefer to do things the hard way. I'm writing a book at the moment. Now it has been suggested to me that I record one of my workshops, send it off to India where someone will type it back and send it back to me. I'm sure that works for lots of people but it's just not right for me. I'm not interested in making money for money's sake.
I had a conversation with another business coach just last week who suggested that I repackage and brand as my own a nasty Americanised shouty copy eBook/ training guide and sell on to my clients. He explained how the guy in America had made several million dollars in the last year alone by selling this kind of stuff. Which is great for him. But I cannot sell a product I don't have absolute conviction in. And I just would not feel right making money out of something that actually just appears to be a lot of hot air. Am I alone in this? Am I making life much, much harder for myself?
Should I just fabricate a few stories to make me seem much more marketable? I don't think so. Because I think in reality if you're good enough, you don't need to lie. And I think integrity always pays off in the end.
That said… the Dragon in question is a multi-million (or is it billion) aire and I am but a humble working mum. Draw your own conclusions!
Difficult one that, money, or people liking you and using your services because they trust you. Maybe your rise to fame won’t be as fast or meteoric, but you’ll sleep better at night (when the baby sleeps), get there in the end (you will!) and those that buy your book will know it’s your work