Personal Values - Do You Know Yours?

I see people and companies talking about values all the time.  Much of the advice involves being sure personal values match up with a company core values to help insure a good fit during the hiring process.  Most companies have their values somewhere; on employee's business cards, on plaques on the wall, painted in murals, even in the bathroom stalls.  What about personal values?  How many of us have our personal values on display for the world to see?  Well, I think putting pen to paper for personal values is just as important as corporate values for three reasons.

1.  They Act as a Guide - Personal values serve as a guide in everything you do.  They help you decide how to respond to a nasty email.  They help you respond to a request that might be slightly unethical.  They help you know how to treat the people around you.  They guide your decisions, interactions, and communication.

2.  They Act as a Reminder - Personal values serve as a reminder to you, and to those around you, of what you believe matters most.  Having a constant reminder of what you believe in will help you live the values every day, and will remind the people around you that your beliefs are important.

3.  They Act as a Filter - Personal values sever as a filter to help you decide who you should associate with, companies you should work for, and what type of people you want to work with.  Companies use their values to filter people out, and we should do the same.

I wrote my values down and am sharing them now.  I would suggest you do the same, and keep them  on display to help guide you, remind you, and filter for you.

PERSONAL VALUES

I am Honest; I am true to the core, I do what’s right no matter how hard, I am authentic in my actions

I am Courageous; I will lead the way, I take smart risks, and I perform in confident and bold ways

I am Inventive; I will act as a catalyst for innovative thinking, passionate in my pursuits, I work creatively to bring ideas and imagination to life, resourceful in making things happen

I am Open; I trust and support others, I thrive on fresh thinking and new ideas, I believe collaboration breeds greatness, I value insights from all customers and co-workers

I am a Learner; I believe learning can and should happen every day, I thrive on new information, ideas, and ways to improve the process, I want to learn the ins and outs of the business I support