Values are the foundation of our leadership

 


Every person is made up of different choices and beliefs. The way we lead and whom we follow are based highly within our values. This is not to say that we can lose sight of our values or follow those who do not align with what we believe is our authentic self. Our values can also help us lead and follow, not with fear, but with belief that we are taking steps towards a future aligning with what we feel is right. Our values are shaped by our experiences, by those we hold in admiration, by those we follow and can sometimes form without even realizing it. When I think of values and how they are formed, I think of my niece. She is ten and though there are experiences she has not witnessed firsthand; it is in the moments that her values are seeming to be questioned that I realize she is learning and leading by example.



To say that values shape our decisions and the way we lead, though true, is not absolute and is not always indicative of positive experience. For instance, if someone’s values align closely with a more self-serving purpose that could be detrimental to their society or community, this could lead to decisions being made that are equally detrimental. Additionally, this could cause you to follow a messianic leader, that perhaps does not align with your personal or communities needs but does so out of fear that you will lose your power or role in society (Green & getz, 2018). We may also develop values from our culture, good and bad, and they can be engrained in our way of life, our communities, our business models even (Weber, 2010). This may mean that we face challenges as we encounter leaders with differing yet contradicting values from our own. Separately, as leaders move forward into our roles in society, we must ensure that we lead open mindedly to the values of others. This is something that I fear I struggle with personally; it is not that I am not open to the values of others, but I can have difficulty seeing contradicting values at times, not necessarily simply different. In many cases, however, it is not about deciding which value is better or being correct, but inclusion (Weber, 2010).

              In the Leading Across Differences chapter, there are connections drawn between values and authenticity. Though authenticity spans beyond just values, I think being the most authentic version of oneself is something to strive for. For me, this starts with understanding my values and ensuring that the steps I take support those. For instance, deciding to work for a certain company, on certain projects, how you vote, can all be tied to our values. More than sharing our values with the world, it is important to exemplify how to interact as our most authentic self and welcoming others to be their most authentic self, even if that looks different to them than it does to us. This includes behaving in and leading through ways which align with your values. Creating space for understanding, as a leader, is imperative in leading beyond ourselves. If we were only to lead those who shared our ideas, thoughts and beliefs, the changes and advances the world has made may not have come to be. There is a chance that this means there will be less conflict, but sometimes conflict is a catalyst for successful ideas. On the other hand, understanding differences and hearing different values can manifest ideas and change that otherwise may have been lost. Understanding that leader-follower relationships can benefit from value congruence, should not keep us from leading across value differences. It should serve as a call to action of responsibility to work harder to be the leader that strengthens their leader-follower relationships despite value differences.

 

                                                                 References

Green, Z, & Getz, C. (2018). United states of America: mourning in America: leadership in the divided states of America. In United States of America (pp. 170-178). SAGE Publications Ltd, https://doi.org/10.4135/9781529714845

Weber, T. J. (2010). Leader Values and Authenticity. In Leading across differences: Cases and perspectives (pp. 163–169). essay, Pfeiffer. 

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