Another element of values alignment is finding areas where a family, a team, or an organization has shared values and exploring how to better express them together. A shared value may mean different things to different people. Companies that are serious about their values, not just happy to have a values statement for their wall, need to set up workshops about what they mean and develop policies, practices, and working relationships aligned with these values. The alternative is that a company presumes to live by values but in fact, employees or family members are cynical about their purported values and do not really trust each other.
While each person has different values, it is possible to agree upon certain shared values the group can strive to live by. These define the basic foundations of behavior and expectations. If we don’t agree with them, we don’t feel comfortable in those environments. Having a group or family values statement does not mean that everyone has only those values; rather, a shared values statement defines the specific values that everyone wants to always have in mind. Each person then can find ways within their own personal style to implement those values.
Actively exploring values differences is important in creating high-performance teams and organizations. Sometimes values discussions become arguments, where people want others to see their values as right and their own previous values as not so.
Creating Shared Values
Sometimes a person does not “fit” into a group because they have different values. Organizations have begun to define their values and make them clear so that people who choose to work there can see in advance if their values are compatible. These values make up their culture and making those values explicit creates a stronger foundation for engagement and commitment. For example, a company where people value teamwork can have a hard time accepting a highly competitive individual who wants to win at all costs. Companies have the ability to seek and hire people who share their values; families do not. If a family expects everyone to be treated equally in terms of sharing resources, this can discourage a young family member who feels that his or her contribution to the family should be more richly rewarded.
People with different values feel most comfortable with others who share their focus and least comfortable with those who have opposing styles. People on a team or in a family usually express several focus areas. It is important to recognize that these are differences in values and to discuss, not argue or condemn those who are different. Curiosity and acceptance prove more helpful than judgment in this activity; no single focus is better than others. A rich and full world, family, or company should contain people who express different values orientations because they also share core values.
As they discuss their values individuals, teams, families, or organizations may want to organize several of them into a personal statement that expresses their highest life purpose. We call this a mission or purpose statement. An individual can create a personal mission statement and of course, a family, team or organization can as well. We believe that this activity takes place after you have defined your values. You can then look at the shared values and ask, “Is there a way that we can tie together our most important values into some purposeful activity that best adds to the world?” The book Well Being, by the Gallup associates, suggests that by stating a goal publicly you are three times more likely to achieve it. Makes sense.
Check back next week to discover the final step in this exercise.
This is the fourth in a series about values. Find the first here, the second here, and the third here. Reprinted with permission.
The Values Wheel and the model of values styles is a tool, a mental model that enables a person to organize and make sense of his or her own values and develop shared values with a special or important group. The values themes and styles discovered in the wheel enable us to organize our multiple values into useful patterns and talk about them with others about differences and commonalities. Using the wheel and defining personal values is the entry point to a series of activities that lead you to live a life more aligned with your values, and to define shared values in your workgroup, family, organization, and community.
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