Values Provides Guidance

Values are one of our most distinctive achievements as human beings. Man acts not only to

serve a personal need, but also to serve a greater purpose and meaning. In fact, values are the

deepest and most powerful motivators of personal action.

Values represent the principle that organizes our life and organization. What is most important

to achieve in our work, family, personal life and career can be described in terms of the values

we want to achieve.

We sometimes mistakenly think of values as a set of “should’” that tell us what we can and

cannot do. This approach is a very limited way of looking at values. Rather, values are

stimulating, motivating, and inspiring. When we are passionate about something, we can

motivate ourselves to achieve great things. A person or organization's best performance comes

when they feel inspired to achieve something that corresponds to their highest values. Values

are the foundation of all learning.

We met people who live important values in our own lives. Remember the people who made a

meaningful difference in your life and the lives of others. What values do they embody? There

are always differences in focus and a growing diversity of values among employees, but

building consensus on key values is an important task for any group. Employees at all levels

must face customers, make costly decisions, and balance competing priorities. Previously,

approvals were generated through strict procedures and standards of conduct enforced by

supervisors. In today's world of greater individual employee improvement and autonomy, people

don't need to be guided by rules or superiors, but they do need to understand the core values of

an organization. If a decision fits the values, it's right.