The Value of Values

According to the book Exploring Leadership, values are the guide to your actions and vary greatly from person to person. It is very important to have a good understanding of your values so that when you are faced with tough decisions you can rationally determine the answer that is most true to YOU.

A leader needs to know their values because keeping consistency when in charge is key.  Followers want to be able to know that their leader is going to stick to a plan and not waiver every time a little opposition is created. The only way positive change is going to occur is if everyone is working toward the same goal under the leader's direction. If the leader is changing viewpoints constantly then it makes it difficult for the team to accomplish anything.

My values come a lot from the way I was raised and my relationship is God. Some of these values are self worth, humbleness, integrity, determination, and following God's plan for me. If I am presented with a task I make sure that my actions do not compromise my values. Relinquishing my values causes me to lose direction, lower my confidence, and eventually fail the mission.

Last night while watching TV I saw a great example of differing values during a challenge. If you have ever seen the show Naked and Afraid you know that they sends a man and a woman into an abandoned area for 21 days. Last night the man Jeff, and the women Eva, had completely different values on their relationship with nature. Eva felt that all creatures/humans are equal and people should be thankful for the gifts mother nature provided them. Jeff on the other hand was of the Mormon faith and believed that God gave them the Earth to use entirely for human needs. Their values played key roles in how they survived the Madagascar desert.

 When a giant black widow spider nest was found near their camp site, Eva did not want to kill them. She said it is not worth the bad karma to kill the spider eggs since they had not done anything to them. This could have cost the pair their lives if they hundreds of eggs hatched during the night. Jeff also made a sacrifice during the adventure for his values. At night the desert got down to freezing temperatures, but he would not huddle up with Eva to stay warm. This was because he believed that as a married man you should not touch another women like this. Because of Jeff's value in purity he made the life threatening decision to keep his distance. In the end, both Eva and Jeff were proud of their decisions. They both thought the other one was crazy though for putting them at such risk for their personal beliefs.

There is no one right way to lead because all styles have differing pros and cons. The only stipulation is those leadership values need to be acknowledged and upheld for followers to trust your lead.