Promise only what you can deliver.
Then deliver more than you promise.
~Author Unknown

October 1, 2008

Do you know anybody who makes a habit of breaking promises? And as you think about that person right now, what does your face look like? I bet you squinted your eyes, tightened your upper lip and felt a moderate surge of frustration. But don’t let it get you. In fact, feel that pain in your gut and make a promise right now to never make anybody feel like you do right now. Because if you go to the “promise breaking dark side,” you will have given up perhaps the greatest gift given to you…the ability to use words to consistently and positively influence others.

But living with integrity not only delivers what some might consider “touchy/feely” benefits. It also yields top individual and team performance which usually translates into more sales, more profits and more success. In his book, The Integrity Dividend, Leading by the Power of Your Word, author Tony Simons did a study of 76 Holiday Inn Hotels. The study showed that the average employee’s perception of how much the employee ‘s manager kept promises and lived by stated values, drove hotel profitability more strongly than employee trust, sense of fairness, commitment, or satisfaction. In short, keeping promises results in higher profits. And in the case of individual Holiday Inns, that meant an additional $250,000 annually!

So this week, whether you lead internal or external customers, keep your promises. Your customers and associates will trust you more. And when they trust you more they will become more emotionally attached to you and your company. And that attachment will translate into a very profitable Integrity Dividend” for years to come.

To learn more about The Integrity Dividend, listen to Brian interview author Dr. Tony Simons on his weekly radio program by going to www.preciseselling.com/Radioaccess.htm. As President of Kansas City-based PRECISE Selling, Brian delivers seminars, podcasts and internet training programs on sales, customer service, leadership and presentation skills to companies of all sizes. To find out more, visit him at www.preciseselling.com or email Brian at bsullivan@preciseselling.com.