What are your values? What do you stand for? A question that we’ve all been asked at some point during our lives and perhaps find our responses ever-changing as time goes by. Having certain values that we stand for inevitably shapes whom we become as individuals.
Values, such an important factor when it comes to making up who we are. We all know our values can reflect many things; the way we go about our daily lives, the way we communicate, the way we act, the way we think and many more things. When it comes to a business, it is very similar. However, with a business we get to be the creator. We have the opportunity of creating the character behind our business, and not only that, but building that character too, allowing that character to ultimately shape us. We have the opportunity of deciding what our business stands for and how those core values are driving our business and leading the way.
You may be wondering why this is important? Well, the same way in which our personal values shape us, reflect us and drive us – our values within our business become the energy and beating heart of what our business will be and what it stands for. We can decide how our business will operate, how our business will respond to its environment, its staff, its customers and potential customers. We get to decide how our business will act and how it will be perceived by the wider world.
Wondering how we can hold that same amount of passion for our personal values as we do for our business values? You aren’t alone.
It’s when we have similarities between our personal values and when we can identify and recognise those similarities with our business values, that the passion is not lost. Our business values don’t need to mirror our own core values, but they should to a certain extent stay in line with them and never conflict.
I’ll leave you with this thought; If our business values remain similar to our personal values, how will the love, passion or inspiration for our business ever fade?
I regularly run workshops on this and many other fundamental business principles. If you would like to know more please click here.