One of my favorite topics I’ve had the opportunity to learn about in my work life is strategic planning. In addition to being involved in my own organization’s planning process, I have also had the chance to visit multiple other places to learn more about their process in getting ready to excel in the future.
Among the most important underpinnings of a strategic plan are the organization’s core values. Along with the mission and vision, they provide the foundation for every decision made in the strategic planning process. I always loved seeing how different workplaces took what is most important to them and translated them into values everyone in the workforce could embrace and embody. Employees couldn’t always name every value verbatim, but when you could see them reflected through actions and passion, you knew they were working.
While I no longer get to make those site visits to learn more about organizations, these days I do get to teach a class once a year about my organization’s mission, vision and values. It’s a fun way for people to connect their work to the bigger picture and understand that we’re all part of a bigger whole.
As I was planning my class, I wanted to take it a step further. I encourage the people in the class to write their own mission statements and to dig deep about what their own core values are in their lives. I encourage them to set themselves up for the behaviors and actions that will guide their future and understand what each of those values means to them. Do all of them enjoy it? Embrace it? Of course not. But there are always a few who I can tell are thinking more deeply about what’s important to them, and that’s enough for me.
Now I wouldn’t try to get anyone in my class something to do that I hadn’t done myself. So it was important to me (for reasons far beyond the class) to think through what my own personal core values are and what they mean to me. Each value comes with a small definition (because a value of strength, for example, can mean different things to different people) and helps me better think about my life in terms of actions, choices and behaviors that I take part in and support. Here are my personal core values:
–Authenticity: I will seek out genuine relationships and be true to who I am.
–Growth: I will continue to learn new things and improve myself in mind, body and spirit.
–Kindness: I will interact with others with thoughtful kindness, not just niceness.
–Justice: I will advocate for what is truly just, not only what has been deemed right.
–Contentment: I will seek enduring contentment rather than fleeting joy.
So there they are…my personal core values. Do I always live up to them as well as I should? Of course not! I still love to gossip (not kind!) and sometimes I find myself neglecting my mind, body or spirit (thanks, depression!), but I always have my values to return to for myself. They help me guide bigger life decisions and how I prioritize my time and effort. They help make me my best and most true self.
I hope this long diatribe will give you a push to think about your own personal core values. They can take a while to think through, cultivate and make your own, but it’s time well spent. Once you’ve selected them (or maybe you already know yours!), I’d love to hear about them in the comments.