“Our values are at our core, and are an expression of how we act every day.”
Warren Rustand.
Lately, I’ve been reflecting a lot on my core values, how I define them, and how I remain true to them.
Warren Rustand, a successful entrepreneur and the Dean of Leadership for The Entrepreneurs’ Organization, says our values carry us through good and bad times. “Our values are everything we do, our acts, and behaviors. It tells people what we actually value, they define our character, they create and compose our integrity.”
Steven Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People defines these as our three moments of truth:
- Discovery of our values. We realize what our core beliefs and values really are.
- Discovery of what we stand for when we commit to those values.
- The moment we act on those core beliefs and values.
In the corporate world, it is common-place that companies define and share their core values and display them in their offices, on their website where customers, employees, and candidates can see them.
We did the same at Artisan Creative and I’m proud that our a.team helped articulate ours after several conversations together. They are Accountability, Agility, Trust, Communication, and Enthusiasm. These are the core values we embrace every day, and how we conduct ourselves in business year over year.
If companies take the time to discover and articulate their core values, why don’t we do this for ourselves? For our families? How can we better share what we stand for and what our values are to others and to our children?
It’s often during difficult times that we need to evaluate what is important to us. Today, with one of the highest unemployment rates on record, many are going through challenging times. Candidates are evaluating and contemplating what their next step can be, and what type of company they want to work for. I’ve heard from many who no longer want to commute long hours, no longer want to work for a company without a purpose, no longer want to travel just for work. They no longer want to work for someone whose values don’t align with theirs.
We live our lives by a certain internal compass, a moral code, and although many times we may not know how to articulate these actions as values, it is in challenging times that we can rely on them.
So as we are in this time of reflection, it’s important to determine and articulate our own personal core values and share them with one another.
Here are three steps to help define yours. This is a process of putting together seemingly disparate puzzle pieces until finally, an image emerges. It requires patience, thoughtfulness, and reflection.
Write down your answers to the following questions:
Reflect back to a time when you were faced with an important decision and ask:
- How did I behave?
- How did I feel?
- What did I want?
- What was important to me?
- What was I willing to stand for?
- What did I NOT stand for?
- What was my non-negotiable?
Reflect back to a time when you were faced with a challenge in your life and ask:
- How did I behave?
- How did I feel?
- What did I want?
- What was important to me?
- What was I willing to stand for?
- What did l I NOT stand for?
- What was my non-negotiable?
Reflect back to a time when someone needed your help:
- How did I behave?
- How did I feel?
- What did I want?
- What was important to me?
- What was I willing to stand for?
- What did I NOT stand for?
- What was my non-negotiable?
Additional questions to bring clarity:
- How do my friends describe me?
- What gives me joy?
- What brings meaning to my life?
Once you’ve answered all the questions, look for common themes, phrases, and words.
Circle those words, or search for other words that resonate with you.
What emerges? Who emerges from those words? Do they resonate with you, and are they who you are at your core?
Once you know them, share this with others. Then, add them to your website and your resume. Let potential employers and employees know how you live by these values.
In the words of Gandhi, “Your beliefs become your thoughts, Your thoughts become your words, Your words become your actions,
Your actions become your habits, Your habits become your values, Your values become your destiny.”
Please connect if you are looking for your next opportunity or your next hire.
We hope you’ve enjoyed the 564th issue of our a.blog.