Introduction
Our values are at the core of our being and the north star guiding us through life. They are shaped by our experiences and our influences, and we carry them around with us even if we’re not aware of them. These values usually manifest in lists of words: family, integrity, religion, community, honesty, authenticity. These lists can go on, or they can be a mere 2 or 3 key values.
Most organizations have some variation of their own values. They show up as mission statements, in their corporate initiatives or directly as their value set. These organizational values are meant to drive the DNA of how the company does what they do, and why it sets them apart from others trying to accomplish the same thing.
Why should leaders be in tune with and integrate their personal values with their everyday leadership practice?
Whether your primary job function is to lead and manage people, or you are a leader without a title, your values not only set you apart from other leaders but are your guiding star when you navigate the complexities and politics of leadership.
Your Leadership Style
Every leader has their own personal style. The cumulation of how they lead the way they do and why they do what they do is what makes them unique. The difference in style can indicate whether a leader can be more or less successful in situations with different needs and challenges.
Let’s take a hypothetical example of two leaders. Leader A’s values are business results, outperformance and teamwork. Leader B’s values are collaboration, communication and authenticity. Both sets of values are honourable and valuable to an organization. If you’re someone who works better in an environment where a little bit of disorganization and missed communication can be forgiven if the results you deliver with your team are strong, you’re more likely to thrive with our fictional Leader A.
Our key values are what guide us into prioritizing behaviours that are encouraged versus discouraged. A strong leader is aware of their own values so that they can clearly communicate them to their team, colleagues and stakeholders. This in turn guides the people working with that leader in understanding the collective how to accomplish their goals.
Your Leadership Impact
A leader’s values also drive the impact they will have to a team, organization and their goals. If your organization is struggling with cohesion and alignment, you may be drawn more to our fictional Leader B to help with those challenges. That’s not to say our Leader A couldn’t be successful with helping navigate through those challenges, but it’s conceivable that our Leader B will have more of a focus on alignment through communication and authenticity.
Each situation a leader is faced with is a little different. The Problem and STARS assessments in The First 90 Days are great examples of the mix of situations and environments leaders can find themselves in. Michael D Watkins shares reliable strategies on how a leader can approach the different situations. Adding the layer of values can bring everything together with a strong guiding star.
In our fictional organization, we may find that the problems are primarily with Political Human Resources and Cultural Operations. Our Leader A may find themselves to have more impact if the organization is in Accelerated growth, as their values are in outperformance (working with people willing to stretch) and teamwork (integrating many new employees). On the other hand, our Leader B may be more impactful if the organization is in Realignment, as they can convince the employees a change is needed through communication and authenticity, and leveraging existing strengths through collaboration.
Your Leadership Brand
Whether they intentionally craft it or not, ever leader has a brand. It’s what that leader is known for and can drive why someone wants to work for or with them. Their brand and reputation usually precedes them and is what people are either drawn to or repelled by.
The values of a leader shape their brand through why they lead the way they do, what is important to them, and what they bring to the organization. The alignment of their values with those of the organization is what sets apart the leaders that thrive from those who don’t. And even more powerful is the team with aligned values, since it provides a feeling of tribal connectedness, while making room for leveraging the diversity of thought and experience across a team.
By understanding, aligning and communicating your values, a leader can strengthen their leadership style, impact and brand. Have you discovered your values?
