Earlier this year, I wrote a blog around limiting beliefs and how they can really impact us, both on a personal and professional level.
As a CEO and business owner, I sadly see many people struggling to believe with absolute certainty in their full potential. This naturally has a direct impact on the action they’re willing to take, to achieve said goals, which in turn impacts the results they achieve. This forms part of the “Success Cycle”.
Those that know me, or have at least read my blogs in the past, will know that I’m super passionate about people and remain fascinated by the psychology of others and committed to positively impacting those around me.
So, values. Why are values so important and how do they have anything to do with success? We all have a set of personal values that dictate how we interact with and judge other people. Our values also dictate how we view ourselves and how we see the world. We have bugbears and our perceived concept of how things “should” be.
Think about it: when you say or hear things like, “If you loved me, you wouldn’t do X-Y-Z,” that is a rule or value that we expect the people around us to follow. Ever get upset because someone didn’t do something, they said they would do? (I certainly have). That is also a value you’re trying to adhere to. We get upset with each other because someone did something to violate some personal “value” that we have and while sometimes our rules are indeed valid, other times they are just plain silly. We often impose our values on people around us, without telling them about our expectations or needs, which only results in disappointment and frustration.
So, there are two questions here. Do you know what your personal values are? And do you communicate them to those around you? Put simply, your values drive your behaviour and your behaviour drives the outcome (be it right or wrong).
Your values and those of colleagues around you will have a direct impact on the culture of your business, so it’s really important to not only understand your own but also those you work closely with. The crazy thing is, if I were to sit in a room with like-minded business owners, CEO’s, leaders etc. and asked what their personal values are, the chances are at least half would cite what their business core values are. There may or may not be similarities with the two, but the truth is, to make any form of positive impact, we must first invest in ourselves to understand what truly makes us who we are, unique to a degree.
The danger in not knowing this could very well be impacting decisions we make at home or the workplace without even knowing it. Most people should have at least 2 personal values that they hold dear to them and live by. I personally have 3 and have had them for most of my life;
1) Honesty 2) Transparency 3) Care
These values represent who I am in both my personal and professional life. I’d even go as far as to say, they are a huge part of my success story and certainly a reason as to why I’m fortunate enough to be running my own business today.
According to Tony Robbins, “Whatever you hold in your mind on a consistent basis, is exactly what you will experience in your life”. So, if we recognise that we are guided by our values and beliefs and we know that we have the power to change them if they’re not serving us well, it may be worth going back to the drawing board to create new rules to live by.
Turn your “should” into a “must’ today.
Start investing in you – believe me, it’s the most rewarding journey you’ll embark on.
