Personal Core Values at Work

Have you ever intentionally identified your personal core values?

It’s an exercise I did in business school that has impacted me profoundly. We were assigned a worksheet that had a bank of common values and and a table where we were instructed to reflect upon and identify values, underlying beliefs, and corresponding actions that may influence our leadership styles. 

I did the exercise for class, but the act of having to choose what values resonate most with me stuck around in my mind. Later, it struck me that these values impacted far more than just my leadership style. I began to notice that when I had strong negative feelings about an organization or person, it was often because I observed violations to those core values. The interesting thing is that by naming the problem, I’ve found myself able to exercise more grace and understanding. Now that I know why I don’t like the “value violator”, I can navigate the misalignment more intentionally and purposefully. 

I’ve also come to believe that organization leaders need to know their personal core values and name their business’ core values in order to hire and retain talent that aligns and are well positioned to thrive.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments.