Values: Your Behavioral Compass at work and home.

When it comes to navigating life's complex decisions and building meaningful relationships, having a clear sense of your values is like having a reliable compass. Values are the foundational principles and beliefs that guide your behavior and decision-making, helping you stay true to your convictions and shape your culture, whether in personal, professional, familial, or organizational settings.

In this episode of "Lead Together," we dive deep into the concept of values, exploring what they are, why they matter, and how to uncover your own. We'll also provide real-world examples and practical tips to help you identify and embrace your core values.

Understanding Values: Your Behavioral Compass

Values are the guiding principles that underpin how you act, make choices, and interact with the world around you. They are the North Star that keeps you on course, ensuring that your actions align with what matters most to you. Here's a quick breakdown of the types of values we'll explore:

Accidental Values: Behaviors adopted without much intention, often unhelpful or unintentional.
Aspirational Values: Idealistic values that may not align with your natural tendencies or core beliefs.
Core Values: Natural, meaningful, and enduring principles that reflect your true self.

Accidental Values: Beware the Unintentional Behaviors

Accidental values are behaviors that you stumble into or simply assume are expected. These are often unhelpful and may not serve your best interests. Examples include:

Routine behaviors that everyone follows without questioning their purpose.
Traditions or customs that you engage in without understanding why.
Practices that lack a clear rationale or meaningful impact on your life.

Aspirational Values: Chasing an Ideal Vision

Aspirational values represent behaviors you aspire to adopt but may not be inherently part of your identity. While they can be inspiring, they can also be challenging to implement consistently. Common characteristics of aspirational values include:

Striving for behaviors that are not natural to you.
Setting goals or ideals that are difficult to achieve.
Using aspirational values to call a group to actions they don't currently practice.

Core Values: Your Unchanging North Star

Core values are the heart of who you are and what you hold dear. They are the behaviors that come naturally to you and reflect your intrinsic identity. Core values remain consistent over time and can be traced through your life story. Examples include:

Behaviors that consistently make you feel fulfilled and aligned with your true self.
Actions that people notice and compliment you on.
The values you live by, regardless of changing circumstances.

Real-World Examples of Values

To better understand values in action, let's explore a few real-world examples:

1. Southwest Airlines: A Culture of Dedication and Fun

Southwest Airlines exemplifies values such as:

Warrior Spirit: Encouraging dedication, excellence, a strong work ethic, and a "can-do" attitude among employees.
Servant's Heart: Prioritizing the needs of customers and colleagues, fostering a culture of service.
Fun-Loving Attitude: Maintaining a positive and enjoyable work environment, even during challenging moments.
Work the Southwest Way: Adhering to the company's values and principles in all actions.

2. Charity Water: Transparency, Innovation, Collaboration, Impact-Driven

As a nonprofit organization, Charity Water's values include:

Transparency: Providing donors with clear and detailed information about their work.
Innovation: Adapting and finding creative solutions to bring clean water to communities.
Collaboration: Partnering with diverse groups and organizations to achieve their mission.
Impact-Driven: Measuring and making a measurable impact in communities worldwide.

3. Redeemer City to City: Gospel-Centered, Church Planting, Leadership Development, Cultural Engagement

A church planning arm of Redeemer in New York City, Redeemer City to City's values revolve around:

Gospel-Centered: Focusing on advancing the gospel of Jesus Christ in urban contexts.
Church Planting: Committing to planting healthy gospel-centered churches in cities.
Leadership Development: Equipping leaders for effective ministry.
Cultural Engagement: Engaging with the unique cultural contexts of different cities.

4. A Family's Values: Love, Serve, Create, Protect

Our family's values include:

Love: Focusing on acts of love instead of hate.
Serve: Emphasizing service rather than taking.
Create: Encouraging creative endeavors over consumption or destruction.
Protect: Prioritizing protection instead of harm or passivity.

Discovering Your Values: Practical Tips

Finding your core values is a profound journey of self-discovery. Here are some practical tips to help you uncover what matters most to you:

Reflect on Your Best Moments: Ask yourself, "In what settings or circumstances have I been at my best?" Make a list of these instances to identify patterns.
Unique Helpful Actions: Consider what you uniquely do that is most helpful to others. Think about how your natural tendencies bless people in your life.
Listen to Compliments: Pay attention to the compliments and gratitude you receive from others. What behaviors do people appreciate in you?
Look for Themes: Examine your list of moments, helpful actions, and compliments. Try to identify recurring themes or behaviors that stand out.
Narrow It Down: Once you've identified potential values, distill them down to three or four core values that truly resonate with your authentic self.

Embracing Your Values: A Life-Altering Choice

Your values are more than just words on a page; they are the guiding force behind your actions and decisions. Embracing your values allows you to live a more authentic, fulfilling life and build relationships and cultures that reflect your true self. So, take the time to discover and embrace your core values, for they are the compass that will lead you in both spheres of work and home.