Integrity

Have you ever told a lie? If you answered no, then “The truth is not in you.” We all lie: There is the social lie, “Hey Bob, how are you doing?” Bob would answer great, even if his life was crashing down around him. 

There is the biggest lie on the Internet. “Please check if you have read the Terms and Conditions. Some websites have replaced read, to agree with, but still if you have not read the Terms, then how do you know if you agree with them?

Point is we all lie.

There is a guy I work with, and I am quite surprised he still works here. He came in, saying he was 27, was a war veteran, and was shot in Afghanistan and medically discharged. He said he was a pilot and had a degree in Mechanical Engineering and owned his own software company. The way this guy talked, He could part the Red Sea, or walk on water - or both.

He progressed through the ranks at my “Brick and Mortar”, and was hired for a training position. He was in the middle of his first class, and they came and took him out. It was discovered that starting with his age - which is actually 19 year old - all of his claims were false. He still works here at my “Brick and Mortar” but nobody believes anything he says anymore.

His credibility is shot.

Being truthful is a very important aspect of our lives as a writer - unless all you write is fiction. Be a fact checker. I was going to use a story about a company that put in the middle of their Terms and Conditions a $10,000 prize for reading the Terms. When I fact checked this information, I could not find anything to substantiate this story. 

Remember if you tell a story that you have not checked out, that will ruin your credibility just like outright lying.

Lie to get more followers?

When I started out this blog, I was very interested in getting followers on my blog - like we all are. I was reading what would drive people to my blog, and one of the suggestions was: Tell an outlandish lie, and have people respond to dispute the lie. 

Really?! I believe that would end all credibility for future posts.

So don’t rely on inflating your story just to get views, rely on the truth and people will flock to you.