Leading with Integrity
Do you lead with integrity?
As an EA we have all been there, a colleague stops by your desk and asks, quietly, “You’d know... is it true?” You do know. And in that small pause, you decide who you are. No one else will ever know what you chose. But you will.
Integrity is an interesting value, one that sits at the heart of both my school’s values and EAs in Education. It is often spoken about, but what does it actually mean?
Integrity is the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles that you consistently follow, so that your actions match your values regardless of who is watching or what it costs you. The word comes from the Latin integer, meaning “whole” or “complete.” A person with integrity is undivided. They are the same person in private as in public, and what they say matches what they do.
For an Executive Assistant, values aren’t just words on a wall. Intregity shows up in the diary, the inbox and the many conversations we have throughout the day. For the EA role, a practical definition might be: integrity is doing the right thing consistently, honestly and discreetly, especially when no one would ever know the difference.
So what does integrity look like in my day as an EA in a school?
> What reaches the Principal’s office stays there
> Representing my Principal faithfully, true to their intent
> Holding myself to the same standards, I ask of my team
> Raising concerns privately and respectfully, rather than staying quiet
> Owning it when I get it wrong
Authority comes with the role. Trust comes from integrity: people know how we’ll behave.
And when our personal values, our school’s values and our professional community all point in the same direction, integrity simply becomes how we work.
