• Integrity is the consistency between intention, the words on your tongue, and your action. While you like to think that you can deceive people with rhetoric, in a normal relationship people judge you by your actions and results. While you think you can hide your motives, the face and body speaks even if your tongue doesn’t.

• Truthfulness in one’s action includes being true in dealings and transactions without cheating or deceiving and not even giving a false impression. What is represented on the inside of the Muslim should be represented on the outside. The prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, “The one who creates a false impression of receiving what one has not been given is like one who wears two garments of falsehood.” (Sahih Muslim)

• Shaddad ibn Aus narrated from the Prophet, “Verily, Allah has prescribed excellence in all things.” This includes perfecting a deed (not limited to act of worship) and doing excellence towards others. Today, many of us have lost self respect and dignity, but a personality of a Muslim should be of a perfectionist, who can be proud of the acts we did.

• People can trust you to be reliable or unreliable. It is your consistent behaviour that determines what people will expect you to be like. Perhaps, your consistent behaviour is coming late to a meeting, people will start expecting you to come late. Build trust of reliability by making consistent deposits into the relationship.

• When dealing with others examine your intention; if it is flawed refine it with a win/win attitude, and declare your intention clearly.

• Make sincere effort to understand what makes deposits to the relationship, and what makes withdrawals. And then consistently make deposits to the relationship. Occasionally you will make withdrawals; balance those withdrawals with deposits. And understand that not making consistent deposit to the relationship is like making withdrawals.

• Key to changing your behaviour is building a compelling sense of purpose. If you have no purpose you have no reason to change your behaviour. Build that sense of compelling purpose so that you can do things consistently.