Effects

Sometimes it is easy to rationalize breaking your integrity when ti doesn't affect anyone but yourself.  If it doesn't hurt anyone, then where's the harm.  The harm is in your honor.  You respect yourself less and less as you compromise your values and integrity.  Even if no one will know that you made the wrong choice, you will, and if you don't respect yourself, you're less likely to make the right decision.  This is an extremely damaging effect on your honor, and it's not worth it.

Proverbs

While reading in Proverbs, I cam across this verse:

"People who promise things they never give are like clouds and wind that bring no rain."

Prov. 25:14

I can imagine being a farmer in an arid area, and feeling excitement when feeling the wind carry dark clouds, and I can imagine that excitement turning to disappointment when those clouds bring nothing but shade.  When you break a promise, whether it's to yourself, or a friend, or teacher, or your boss, you disappoint everyone involved.  And you won't be able to trust yourself, and they won't be able to trust you, as easily as you/they used to.  You sai you could be trusted before, and you couldn't, so why should they trust you now?

Dumbledore

I was watching Harry Potter the other day, when Dumbledore said something that has stuck with me:

"Soon, we must all make the choice between what is right and what is easy."

I believe this to be true.  This is one of the surest tests of our integrity.  Choosing between right and easy, is hard, but it shouldn't be.  

Structural

The word "integrity" has different meanings based on what it's being applied to.  When talking about a building, structural integrity refers to how strong the building is.  A structure without integrity will easily collapse in a storm.  The same goes for us.  Without integrity, we can be easily blown around by the winds that life throws at us.  Having integrity gives a sturdy foundation upon which to stand.

Bring it Together

Integrity is made up of a lot of things.  When what you think, say, promise, and do all coincide, you have integrity.  These are the basic building blocks of integrity in it's simplest form.  Working towards this should be a goal that all of us have.  If we are stronger in one area than we are in another, then that's an area you should focus on , perfect, and then move on to the next.

Look Inside

More and more, I think that integrity is something that we have to look inside ourselves to find.  Sure, there are guidelines in the world that have been set up for us to follow, not to steal, not to lie, not to cheat, but I think that it's something that you have to decide for yourself.  There are instances, such as in my Dilemma post, where you may have to choose between two values, and arguably good values at that.  You have to decide what that right thing is, even if everyone else tells you that it's stupid amd wrong.  No one can decide but you.

Pop Culture

One thing I've noticed is that we tend to support fictional characters who have a code, despite the fact that they might not be the best role models.  On the one hand, we have Superman, who always does the right thing, and on the other we have Batman, a dark vigilante who plays by his own rules.  Superman is seen as boring, while Batman is more sexy.  The popularity of shows like Breaking Bad, or The Wire, or Dexter also supports this.  The characters in these shows are arguably horrible people, and would be villains in any other circumstance.  But since each of them as some kind of code, some level that they wouldn't stoop too, they're the character everyone roots for.  Take Robin Hood for example.  He's a thief, and there's no arguing around that, but he only steals from the rich, so that makes it okay.  Arguably, he's only stealing the money that was stolen away from the rich to begin with, but still, stealing is stealing.  Having a code in pop culture seems to guarantee that anything you do is ok, so long as you don't break your code.