In his famous “I Have a Dream” speech at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963, Martin Luther King spoke about being judged on “the content of your character.” It’s this content that provides the spiritual force to your ability to lead. Quite simply, people respond to honest, authentic, and principled leaders.
Core values are an unwavering and unchanging guide for principled behavior and action. They help leaders discern right from wrong, and ensure an organization remains true to their purpose and mission. Without core values, things disintegrate and go wrong as witnessed by the galling string of recent corporate scandals.
I don’t know about you, but I like to sleep well at night knowing that I’ve stayed true to my values and done my best to do the right thing.
So what’s the content of your character? What are those moral anchors that guide your behavior and action?
This much is true: knowing your values and consistently acting in accord with them are absolutely necessary to any success you have as a leader.
The values we hold have been given to us over the process of a lifetime, but particularly our youth. Dr. Martin Seligman, the founder of the positive psychology movement, has identified 24 character strengths, or core values that have endured the test of time and are valid across all nations and cultures.
1. Creativity [originality, ingenuity]: Thinking of novel and productive ways to conceptualize and do things; includes artistic achievement but is not limited to it
2. Curiosity [interest, novelty-seeking, openness to experience]: Taking an interest in ongoing experience for its own sake; finding subjects and topics fascinating; exploring and discovering
3. Judgment [critical thinking]: Thinking things through and examining them from all sides; not jumping to conclusions; being able to change one’s mind in light of evidence; weighing all evidence fairly
4. Love of Learning: Mastering new skills, topics, and bodies of knowledge, whether on one’s own or formally; obviously related to the strength of curiosity but goes beyond it to describe the tendency to add systematically to what one knows
5. Perspective [wisdom]: Being able to provide wise counsel to others; having ways of looking at the world that make sense to oneself and to other people
6. Bravery [valor]: Not shrinking from threat, challenge, difficulty, or pain; speaking up for what is right even if there is opposition; acting on convictions even if unpopular; includes physical bravery but is not limited to it
7. Perseverance [persistence, industriousness]: Finishing what one starts; persisting in a course of action in spite of obstacles; “getting it out the door”; taking pleasure in completing tasks
8. Honesty [authenticity, integrity]: Speaking the truth but more broadly presenting oneself in a genuine way and acting in a sincere way; being without pretense; taking responsibility for one’s feelings and actions
9. Zest [vitality, enthusiasm, vigor, energy]: Approaching life with excitement and energy; not doing things halfway or halfheartedly; living life as an adventure; feeling alive and activated
10. Love: Valuing close relations with others, in particular those in which sharing and caring are reciprocated; being close to people
11. Kindness [generosity, nurturance, care, compassion, altruistic love, “niceness”]: Doing favors and good deeds for others; helping them; taking care of them
12. Social Intelligence [emotional intelligence, personal intelligence]: Being aware of the motives and feelings of other people and oneself; knowing what to do to fit into different social situations; knowing what makes other people tick
13. Teamwork [citizenship, social responsibility, loyalty]: Working well as a member of a group or team; being loyal to the group; doing one’s share
14. Fairness: Treating all people the same according to notions of fairness and justice; not letting personal feelings bias decisions about others; giving everyone a fair chance.
15. Leadership: Encouraging a group of which one is a member to get things done, and at the same time maintaining good relations within the group; organizing group activities and seeing that they happen.
16. Forgiveness: Forgiving those who have done wrong; accepting the shortcomings of others; giving people a second chance; not being vengeful
17. Humility: Letting one’s accomplishments speak for themselves; not regarding oneself as more special than one is
18. Prudence: Being careful about one’s choices; not taking undue risks; not saying or doing things that might later be regretted
19. Self-Regulation [self-control]: Regulating what one feels and does; being disciplined; controlling one’s appetites and emotions
20. Appreciation of Beauty and Excellence [awe, wonder, elevation]: Noticing and appreciating beauty, excellence, and/or skilled performance in various domains of life, from nature to art to mathematics to science to everyday experience
21. Gratitude: Being aware of and thankful for the good things that happen; taking time to express thanks
22. Hope [optimism, future-mindedness, future orientation]: Expecting the best in the future and working to achieve it; believing that a good future is something that can be brought about
23. Humor [playfulness]: Liking to laugh and tease; bringing smiles to other people; seeing the light side; making (not necessarily telling) jokes
24. Spirituality [faith, purpose]: Having coherent beliefs about the higher purpose and meaning of the universe; knowing where one fits within the larger scheme; having beliefs about the meaning of life that shape conduct and provide comfort.
It is vital to know your values, be grounded in them, and use them on a regular basis. Your signature strengths are the things that truly make you unique and give you something special to offer the world
So, here’s what I want you to do to understand your core values:
1. Go to https://www.viame.org/survey/Account/Register and take the VIA Character Strengths survey for free.
2. Identify your top five character strengths.
3. Commit to employing those strengths on a daily basis.
4. Let me know what you learn!
By Joe Scherrer | The Leadership Crucible Writer