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People who work for values and mission driven organizations are more committed and more likely to use discretionary time to achieve the organization’s priorities, are more likely to stay at the organization, and productivity increases. Encourage employees to identify their personal values and purpose in life while also sharing the organizations values and mission. Help employees to reflect on how their values are aligned to the organization’s. Individuals with a strong mission and values find it easier to make decisions and live with integrity. We admire people with integrity for upholding strong values, being consistent, and having a moral compass.

When we focus on our top values, stress decreases, learning improves, health improves; we don’t need to defend ourselves from attacks on our self-concept because we know we are more than any one issue or self-concept. We are more resilient and can learn from feedback that would otherwise make us more defensive.

How can you help employees define their values? In workshops, I share a list of values and ask participants to select the top seven most important to them. I ask them to write a sentence or two that describes what they mean by that value. How do you define your purpose for living / your mission? Identify the important values and causes you care about, what you want to give, and who you want to give it to. Incorporate the skills that you are good at and that give you joy.