Morality outside of a religious organizing system is difficult to conceive for many. Yet within our hearts we can know what is right and what is wrong; and from that knowing act accordingly.  Honesty and integrity applied with purpose toward good, justice and righteousness are at the core of morality. And this is a reality to which all can aspire.

If a person says that she has integrity, strives for integrity and applies it to certain aspects of her life, but not all, then she is cultivating contradiction within her life.  That is, she is saying one thing, projecting herself in one way, while living in another way.  In her heart she knows that she is wrong and that it is unhealthy to say one thing and do another, yet because some need is still being met by this act she outwardly speaks against, she continues to do it.  She sneaks around, avoiding certain conversations or people because she knows that they know of this other life or because she does not want to be discovered.  She justifies it in her mind to pacify her unsettled soul while continuing to live this way. But there is no justification. And each time she tells herself that it is ok, each time she lies to herself, each time she does this thing she speaks against, a little piece of her soul is chipped away.  Unstopped, over time she becomes a mere shell of what she was, not being able to trust herself, believe in herself, strive to fulfill a higher purpose; not being able to trust others or develop relationships based on honesty and integrity. 

1. When you are honest with yourself, only then can you be honest with others.  When you are honest with yourself, then you can look at situations and people from a point of clarity that does not exist otherwise.  To cultivate honesty you must look at reality as it is and not what you hope it will be, want it to be or expect it to be; just what it is. As you develop that level of honesty with yourself, then you become better at seeing the world as it really is, for what it really is.  When you see the world as it really is, including all that takes place in it, then you can draw conclusions based on that reality.  However if you are not honest with yourself, then you never gain the practice or develop the habit of seeing things for what they really are.  Rather you see yourself and the world around you through the veil of expectation, hope and desire; all mirages, images, fantasies, made up things.  Furthermore, as you move through life you develop the habit of responding to the images and not the reality.  Thus fantasies become the reality. That is why you must be honest first with yourself, and only then can you be honest with others.
2. Integrity is the practice of honest living.  Integrity is something that people do, not talk about.  You have integrity when your deeds match your words; when you live in a manner that is honest and consistent with your words.  Each moment that you live with integrity, you become better, tougher; a greater force for what is good and right.  Your heart is pure and your conscience is clear.  Yet when you say one thing, project yourself in one way, but do the opposite (even when no one knows but you), then that slowly chips away at your soul; it diminishes what you come to expect of yourself and what you can expect from others.  When you do not have integrity, the expectations you have of yourself are lowered; you don't expect anything of yourself; you expect others to drop the ball or not do what they say; you wont commit to anything because you know you wont do it anyway; and you don't finish things (or don't finish strong) because your commitment is weak.  Practice honest living by having integrity.  Your standards will be high because your expectations will be high as you strive to live righteously and honestly.