There are two fundamental things that you must get right to take your company to where you want it to go. Forget one of these and you can easily lose not only your way, but also your sense of self.
While it’s critical to have a Vision for your company that stirs people’s souls and captures their imaginations, it’s essential that you have another thing in place, and sometimes this can get overlooked…….
It’s fundamental that you have a clearly defined set of Core Values and Principles.
These are who you are and what you stand for.
They are the blueprint that underpins and drives every decision not only in your journey to achieve your Vision, but in your personal life too.
It’s one thing to know where you’re going, but it’s an entirely different matter when you come to the how you’re going to do it, and without a set of fundamental principles and values driving your every action to achieve your Vision, you and your team are like a rudderless ship, lost in the sea of endless options and opinions. If this happens, you are in danger of not only your company losing it’s way and identity, but also yourself as the leader and as an effective human being.
As the saying goes, “There’s many ways to skin a cat”, however, if you’re not “skinning a cat” in a manner you always aspired to, or your team isn’t, then you’ve lost your way.
I’ve written many times about the importance of a Vision (see here and here for starters), so today and for the next 5 articles, I want to focus on the absolute necessity for knowing what your Core Values and Principles are, and give you a little insight as to what mine are and why. Let’s get cracking.
As I mentioned earlier, to lead people effectively, you must know what you stand for.
Do you know what you stand for?
Do you know what your Core Values are?
You must know what you stand for, how you plan for yourself and your people to conduct yourselves – your Core Values and Principles.
Influential leaders not only live these for themselves, but they embed their Core Values and Principles into the individuals and teams they lead. Only then can you really effectively begin to develop your Culture.
Culture is Leadership.
Good leadership, good culture. Bad leadership, bad culture. And your culture has an enormous influence on your company’s future as it drives everything. Every decision. Every behaviour.
My family, my closest friends and all my Leadership Dynamics clients know my Core Values and what I stand for.
Do the people that are closest to you in your life and the team you Lead, and the clients you service, know what you stand for?
My Leadership effectiveness is driven by the FLITU Principles:
- FAMILY
- LOYALTY
- INTEGRITY
- TRUST
- UNITY
The above Core Values are what I stand for.
Your Core Values will navigate your direction in life.
When you lead teams, they must know what you stand for so that there is a line in the sand which helps to navigate their behaviours as individuals, and within the team, as a result of having clear expectations of what you expect as the leader.
The FLITU Principle is embedded within individuals that I have led one on one, which is what is required to build a successful organisation, as well as leading teams. You must take one on one time with your team members to communicate your Core Values and Principles and what you expect from them moving forward.
How have you communicated your Core Values?
When it comes to your Values, are individuals and the team you lead, aligned?
What values do you need to communicate more effectively to grow behaviours in the team you lead?
For your Core Values to be taken seriously by individuals in the team you lead, they must see you lead by example and live the values that you stand for.
Does your team see you live your values?
Is there a Core Value you’re not living?
Leadership is a responsibility and authentic Leaders grow their influence and have individuals in the team want to follow them as a result of being the real deal and living their Core Values.
The FLITU Principle is what I live by.
What Values and Principles do you live by as the Leader?
Thank you for taking the time to read my article.
I trust my articles can play a part in helping you grow your Leadership strength to live a better life!
Peter (Coxey)
I talk further about the importance of values in my book, “The Dream Is Everything”.
If you’d like to receive a FREE e-copy, (RRP $24.95), click here.
Some other articles I’ve written on this topic (or similar ones) are:
Do People Think You’re Crazy? Achieving Your Vision – The Critical Components to Lead4Growth. Pt 1.
Do People Think You’re Crazy? Achieving Your Vision – The Critical Components to Lead4Growth. Pt 2.
