Welcome back if you are continuing from Chapter Two, and welcome if you are new. This chapter is focused on your leadership values. If you haven’t done the first step in this process, I would recommend you start at Chapter One first and check out Chapter Two.
What are values?
Your values are the things that you believe are important in the way you live. They determine your priorities, and deep down, they are probably the measures you use to tell if your life is turning out the way you want it to. While values can sound quite abstract, it is about the actions and behaviours that we do every day that tell us, and others, what our values are and how authentically we are really living.
Values can change, but over time, they are stable and consistent. Values are one set – they are yours, and they cross personal and professional life. We do not have one set of values for work and one set of values for the other parts of our life.
Why do you need to know your leadership values?
Knowing what your values are as a leader is critical. It will help you understand yourself and show you where you are living in congruency and where there might be conflict. They will help you in situations where there is no clarity on what the best action is. Tapping into your values gives you a great foundation upon which to consider your options and how best to act. Over time, values become a strong part of who we are and drive much of what we do and how we act. For now, we are spending time learning what they might be.
I am a firm believer that where there is a conflict between the individual and, say, an organisation or a team; it is usually a values clash. Having said that, we also know teams are complex, so there might be more there, but if you start with understanding values, it will go a long way to uncovering the beginning of a root-cause issue.
As always, if you invest in yourself, the rewards will be unfathomable.
Chapter Three of Five
Exercise: Grab a blank paper sheet, journal, or other non-technology-based writing tools (here are some benefits you can read).
Take a look at the values in the table below. This is not an exhaustive list, and it is intended to get you started. If you find that other values come to mind and they are not on the list, go with those.
Choose the top three to five leadership values that “speak” to you. I would recommend no more than five values. If everything is a priority, as James Clear says, then nothing is a priority. So if you have more in the first instance, that is fine; refine and get down to five.
Sit with them. Journal or meditate on the list.
Now answer the following questions:
Let’s test the list. Does it sound true? How do your behaviours and actions align with the values you have chosen? Write out some examples of the last time one or two of your values were tested. How did you respond? What did you learn about yourself? What did you learn about others?
How are you living your values in your life? And which areas do you need to improve on? For example, if relationships are a value for you, and you can see that there is a conflict between that value and how you have been behaving in your relationships in the last few weeks/months, what actions might you take to re-align and live congruently with your values?
Do you know your organisation’s values? Where are you aligned/misaligned? For example, if you find yourself in situations at work where there is always a conflict between your values and the values of your organisation, what actions can you take to rectify this? And if the two sets of values are aligned, how have you shared this with others?
Bonus & caveat
If the above questions at any time give you a clue that maybe the values you have chosen are not “sitting” ones for you, then go back and do the exercise again. There is no right or wrong answer here. They are your leadership values, and they need to resonate with you.
Write down your answers and go back to your day.
Until next time.
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