Whose values are you living at work?
"Larry Thomas, the former president of the Society of the Plastics Industry, worked side by side with top oil and plastics executives.
He's retired now, on the coast of Florida where he likes to bike, and feels conflicted about the time he worked with the plastics industry.
"I did what the industry wanted me to do, that's for sure," he says. "But my personal views didn't always jibe with the views I had to take as part of my job." [emphasis added]
Last week, NPR published a story on How Big Oil Misled The Public Into Believing Plastic Would Be Recycled. It's a horrifying read on many levels, but the quote above really stood out to me as a coach who works with people to identify and live their values.
This disconnect between what people claim to value and the actions they take at work can be jarring. It's easy to condemn extreme examples like the one above, or the endless stream of White House departures writing tell-all books, but more challenging to examine our own values and how we're living them (or not) through our careers. However, if we don't, we're leaving a lot on the table, both in terms of societal good and personal fulfillment.
So how might we start? I'd suggest asking yourself three questions:
Do I know what my values are?
Whose values am I honoring at work?
How can I bring my values to life in my career?
Do I know what my values are?
Deep down inside you know what your values are, but are you aware of them? Could you articulate them if asked? When awareness of your values is low, you might feel a general unease or dissonance when something is counter to your values, but you might not be able to explain why. When you aren't clear on what's important to you, it's easier for others to set the agenda. That's why I spend my first session with coaching clients getting clear on values and writing them down on paper.
If you don't know your values, use some of the questions below to get yourself started. The answers can point you in the direction of some values. This list doesn't have to be perfect, but it will be a good jumping-off point if you're just getting started.
What's important to me?
What's the impact I want to have on others? On the world?
How do I want to be remembered?
What do I love?
When do I feel at my best?
What drives me nuts? (This could indicate a value being stepped on)
Whose values am I honoring at work?
Now that you can better articulate them, ask yourself what values you're living at work. Are they the ones you just wrote down?
We know that what truly matters to you doesn't magically change when you're on the clock. And yet, that's the implicit message that our corporate culture sends: that employees should prioritize doing what they're told and maximizing the profits of their organization above all else. This doctrine of shareholder primacy absolves us of responsibility for what we do at work and, in return, removes our agency.
We know this approach hasn't served us as a society, and I'd argue that it doesn't serve you either. We don't have many good ways of measuring how we're doing in life. I think most of us can agree that it's not our job title or how much money we make. The best test I can think of is how we live up to what we say is important to us. If we spend 40+ hours per week ignoring what's important to us, how well can we be doing? How fulfilled could we be?
When it comes to your values, take an honest look at whether you're in the driver's seat or along for someone else's ride.
How can I bring my values to life in my career?
This is the part I love. No one expects that you're going to honor 100% of your values 100% of the time. But, when you start getting clear on what it would look like to honor your values, you'll find a multitude of ways to get closer.
To start, I'd suggest grabbing a notebook and getting down as many thoughts as possible related to the following questions. Don't stop at your first answer. Challenge yourself to ask "what else" at least a few times before moving on to the next question.
When I think about my values, what's important about the organization I work for?
What's important to me about the impact it has on the world?
What's important to me about how they treat their employees?
How should my role align with my values?
How should my interactions with my colleagues, customers, and partners reflect my values?
What's important about what and who I advocate for?
When is it important that I speak up at work?
What's important to me about the products/processes/programs I create?
When you're done, look at how your answers match up with your current reality. What opportunities do you have to honor your values a little more? It might feel like there are a lot of possibilities. It could even feel a little overwhelming when you think about what it would look like to do this in a large organization. My advice: start small. What would it look like to take a step to honor your values more in your team? Or on a specific project?
Notice how you feel when you take a step to honor one of your values. It's pretty fantastic, right? You may very well find that it's a feeling you'll want to replicate again and again. And I hope you do, both for your own fulfillment and the greater good.
