Last year in Madison as in other communities there was great social unrest.  On a main street downtown,  store fronts were boarded and then eventually literally covered in murals representing individual and collective values of a community.  What a sight.  Heartbreaking in some ways.  Inspiring in others. There was pain and there was hope.  Storefronts were a gallery of values.

But in everyday life, and in leading or managing others…our values aren’t as apparent. 

Wouldn’t it be great if we were that transparent?  For your boss who values integrity.  Your employee who values empathy.  Your peer who values teamwork.  We could understand their foundation and so frequently their behaviors.  You would probably think very carefully about navigating, these values if they were so apparent, and maybe even to honor them.

Because the culmination of all our values, our beliefs make us who we are.  They give us a unique identify.  Others form impressions of us based on them.

Our values are our principles, or standards of behavior, the judgements we make of what is important in life.  They guide us, they inform our decision-making process, they create focus and they also can create anger—when they are violated.

When we live life in alignment of our values, we are happier, less stressed.  More in balance.  When we don’t we’ll experience a dissonance.  Somethings not right.  And sometimes we don’t know what that is. 

Values guide us, but where do they come from?  Sometimes it’s influenced heavily by our family, religion, relationships, work situations, or education.  We're affected by our environment.  And very frequently, we aren’t even aware of this process, we adopt values unconsciously.  

Knowing how much they affect us, I am consistently weaving this discussion of values into leadership classes openly and transparently

Because it’s hard to lead with our values if we don’t know what they are. 

Once I was facilitating a team session and I knew in advance there were several people not “getting along.”  When we did the values assessment and they noted their top values on a sticky note, it was very obvious to see where some of the disconnects were.

It opened their eyes to some of those differences, but also how rich their relationship could be if they valued the diversity of beliefs.  How could these values work in harmony?  And how could they use them to purposefully strengthen the relationship?  It was a moment of clarity and awareness.  And a deepening of trust.

Planting Leadership Seeds:

• Assess your values:
• Values in Action Assessment

Prioritize them; navigate them with constraint, find those that are most important

• Keep them in the forefront
• Use for decision-making and goal setting

It’s important to remember, values are aspirational, they guide us.  When we don’t live by them, we don’t have to beat ourselves up—we determine how we can do better moving forward.

Elvis said: “Values are like fingerprints.  Nobody’s are the same, but you leave them all over everything you do.”

Let’s leave them on everything we do, and also talk about them transparently.  Because then we have a chance to be like the stunning gallery on State Street in Madison.  The honoring of similarities and our differences.  That’s the imprint we leave on the world.

Lead with your values intentionally:   

Be the Best Leader You Know

Perform with Power, Lead with Impact, Inspire Growth

To sharpen your skills and increase your confidence, check out the Confident Leader Course:  https://www.intentionaleaders.com/confident-leader