WHAT’S MORE IMPORTANT YOUR INTEGRITY OR CODE SWITCHING?
Posted on February 02, 2023 by Leithea Williams, One of Thousands of Life Coaches on Noomii.
Code switching can present itself in all aspects of our lives which interferes with who we connect with and how we connect with them.
Be gracious, be truthful, and above all have integrity; police yourself every day don’t leave that job to someone else, you are responsible and accountable to you. Your integrity is your shield in a world of chaos, misunderstandings, and seductions. However, before getting to accountability you must first determine your value system and stay within the boundaries of that system. As it stands today can your personal and professional lives overlap without negative consequences or are you living in two different spaces with two different faces? If your integrity was put to the test would your world(s) shatter? Are you code switching? These are questions we should be asking ourselves every day as we get ready to enter the world and connect with others. Connectivity is vital to our survival, we must preserve good relationships with those around us whenever we can by being kind, thoughtful, generous, peaceful, and neighborly to those we encounter daily. When there are no connections to other humans, we become apathetic, duplicitous, characterless, and numb to the effect our behaviors are having on others.
Integrity is a vital part of humanity it speaks to our character; it feeds our compassion for others. Without a value system we lose graciousness, truth, respect, and discipline instead we become judgmental and unpleasant to be around. Our value system allows us to extend ourselves to others when they request our help, it gives us the confidence to walk with our heads held high among the crowd. Our values are reflected in how we treat ourselves and those around us, they dictate our behaviors, our morals, and our personal code of conduct of what is acceptable or unacceptable to us. Some value systems are cultural, some are personal, and some are a combination of both but whatever category you fall in find favor with yourself; avoid code switching.
We harm ourselves when we focus solely on OURSELVES. That however does not negate the impact our behaviors have on our families and close friends because they sometimes also have to deal with the fallout from the things we do. When we do well, they enjoy the glow from the praise of others likewise when our lights dim due to unreasonable behaviors, they may also experience the negative effects. How often do your worlds intersect? If they do not you are lucky, but for this argument let’s say they just might are you comfortable wearing different faces in different spaces? Imagine the fallout if your worlds should ever intersect would any of the faces you wear be able to manage the conflict? Are your worlds code switching compatible?
We should live our lives as an active memorial to our value system, if who we are to different people in different spaces cannot confidently be a person of integrity then that face represents a contributor to conflict and less of an integral part of managing the problem. Can you minimize or manage conflict with your integrity still intact should your worlds intersect?
