Definition
Integrity is the alignment of what a person believes, what they say, and what they do. The word's root means wholeness, and that is the Stoic sense: a life that is not divided against itself, where conduct in private matches conduct in public.
For the Stoics, integrity follows from virtue being the only true good. If a good life is a matter of acting rightly, then acting rightly consistently — not selectively or for show — is what a coherent character looks like.
Why it matters
How it works
Integrity is built through repeated small decisions to act on principle even when no one is watching and even when it costs something. Each consistent choice reinforces the next; each compromise makes the next compromise easier.
The Stoic evening review supports it directly, surfacing the places where words and actions drifted apart so they can be realigned. Marcus Aurelius reminded himself to be one person, whole and undivided, rather than a self that bends to each circumstance.