WEEKLY WISDOM - VALUES

Values: a person's principles or standards of behavior; one's judgment of what is important in life.

My wife and I do lots of marital coaching and as part of the process we intentionally spend time with couples discussing and identifying their values individually and together. This becomes a robust discussion as the couples discover that this is foundational to their union. They wrestle over what’s most important to their hearts and what actions or issues may crack their foundation.

Having the values discussion is an area where we discover many challenges and issues in marriages and  personal lives because the couple or the individual has not identified what is truly important to them. Many couples even become awkwardly comfortable with decisions and actions that push against their unnamed or unidentified values. This can cause an endless sea of frustrations and they find themselves operating in dysfunction or on the spinning wheel of life going nowhere.

Values are a blessing from God. They provide a standard, a guardrail, a compass, a focal point for our lives. They prioritize what’s essential and paramount in our leadership, life, and heart which then manifests in our conversations and actions.

Now to your challenge as a leader. What are your values? What’s closest to your heart? What gives you life as a leader? What kinds of actions will irritate or even lacerate your values?

I know you are pondering over what your values are. Some of the basics that come to mind include trust, character, and integrity. Those are great starts, but there are even deeper and more profound values that align with who you are and how you are fearfully and wonderfully made. (Click below for a list of values).

Personal Core Values List (1).pdf

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The company you work for, the board you serve on, and the businesses you patronize all have values. Does your own leadership and personal values align with theirs? Believe it or not, this is a foundational reason why you work for a company or lead your own organization.

Your assignment is to identify your leadership and personal values. The values will be your plumb line in leadership and life. Remember, your values must be essential and paramount to your leadership in all facets of your life. Your values help to develop the best version of yourself and empowers you to show up and operate at the highest leadership level.

Here are a few very important men who lived out their values; Joseph in Genesis Chapters 37-50, Daniel from the book of Daniel, James from the book of James, and Stephen in Acts Chapters 6,7, Acts 8:2, 11:19, and 22:20. Their values provided the "non-negotiable" and "no compromising" standards in how they lived their lives and led others.

Be principle led by operating in your values. This will level up your life and leadership.

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Exercise Your Power this week

1.       Identify 3-5 values that represent your leadership and personal life.

2.       Read the book of James and the story of Stephen in Acts.

3.       Know your company’s values and ensure they align with your leadership and personal values.