Integrity isn’t about words or intentions

Integrity isn’t about words or intentions. It’s about what you do when the stakes are real.

At one point, I was running two projects for the same client: one fixed-price, one time-and-materials. On the fixed-price project, we had badly underestimated and ended up spending far more hours than budgeted. On the time-and-materials project, I couldn’t deliver the full number of hours we had agreed on.

The easy thing would have been to shift some of those “extra” fixed-price hours into the time-and-materials budget. On paper, it would all balance out. The client would never have noticed.

But I didn’t. I credited the hours back instead. Because integrity, for me, means not bending agreements to suit my situation, even when the numbers look tempting.

I think most people want to do good in the world. And many of us, if we’re honest, also do good because it feels good. I’m no exception.

Psychologists call this the Warm Glow effect: that quiet satisfaction when your actions line up with your values. It’s not about being perfect or selfless. It’s about the joy and steadiness that comes from knowing you acted in line with your compass.

For some, their moral compass is religion. For others, it’s spirituality. For me, it’s a set of principles I’ve carried with me. It makes daily decisions easier, and it definitely helps me sleep at night.

A bit ironic: running a data company, but being guided more by emotions than by ratios.

Still, I think this is what keeps me consistent, in my work and in life. Doing good, feeling good, and staying true to my compass. Not perfect, not heroic. Just… steady.