The Importance of Core Values

Hello and welcome to Simplifying Business with Tonya Sowles, the podcast that entangles the complexities of running a successful business. Running a business can be like navigating a maze full of twists and turns and unexpected challenges. But fear not, because each week on this podcast, we're diving into the heart of business matters to bring you insights, strategies, and conversations that simplify the journey. It whether you're a seasoned entrepreneur or just starting out, simplifying Business is your go to resource for practical advice on everything from human resources and goal setting to core values and other fundamental business basic. I've spent years working with businesses, helping them thrive, and now I'm bringing that expertise straight to you. We'll be featuring interviews with industry experts, sharing success stories, and tackling questions that keep you up at night. Grab a cup of coffee, hit the play button, and let's simplify a business together. 

Welcome to the first episode of Simplifying your business with Tonya Sowles. I'm your host, Tonya Sowles, and today we're going to be delving into the topic of core values. It's the bedrock for every successful business. You might be asking, what are core values and why are they important? Well, my friends think of them as your guiding principles that shape your business identity, your business culture and decision making. They're the compass that helps keep you on course, especially when seas get rough. A lot of times, small businesses especially, but many times, entrepreneurs don't think about really identifying those core values early in their business. And then months, years down the road. They're kind of lost.

Core values is not something just for corporations. They're not just something that you see in the annual report from those big businesses.

The core values are those guiding stars.

For every business, whether you have employees, whether you're a solopreneur. And I want to talk about how do we identify those core values? How do we make sure they're just not words that maybe you have on a wall or that you have in a report, but they're really the principles that your company lives and breathes by now. The hardest part is starting, and it's digging deep within yourself and thinking about what do you want your business to stand for? What principles are non negotiables? What is that little nagging voice in the back of your head telling you? These are the questions that start to guide the process. And remember, it's not just what sounds good, it's about what you truly believe in and can rally behind. I'm a big fan of Mike Mccallowitz, and in his Pumpkin Plan book, he talks about immutable laws, those things. That little voice in your head that I just talked about goes off as a red flag. Or, I'm not doing that. Or, this is a super important thing. It could be integrity, it could be honesty, or I worked with one of my clients and one of their core values is ranch mentality. If it needs done we do it so that as you.

Are building your business, you're using these core values to help you decide customers, to help you decide employees, to help you decide what you want to do. Now, when you have really identified those deep down things that are non negotiable for you in doing business, you now have to create the company culture that reinforces those values. I just did a workshop recently when we were talking about performance management for your employees. Not only do you use your core values in basic decision making processes, but you also use them as part of your hiring process, as part of how you hold people accountable. And they're really that heartbeat of your organization. It's important that you have them clearly identified, written down, typed out in a document so that you can communicate them really clearly, celebrate them, and ensure they're considered. In every strategic move you make, you hear about corporations that give awards for excellence in one of their core values. You can do that within your business very easily, even if you're rewarding or identifying a customer or a vendor who aligns with those values. Now, for many of you, you're thinking, okay, I have my core values, I know what they are. Well, we need to talk about practical things on how to embed those into the DNA of your business.

So let's talk about the places that you're going to see them and how they're going to get involved in your business. So your core values are more than just words on the wall. First off, if you have a team, whether they're employees, independent contractors, make sure you involve them. Make sure that anyone who is using your company name, your business name, can be an embodiment of those core values. It's important, especially if you're just developing.

Those core values, that you seek feedback.  Seek input to make sure that, especially when you have employees, that they're a part of the process so they buy in. This also helps them take ownership and Then will foster these core values and Grow with your company. You can incorporate your core values, like I mentioned, in the onboarding process, in your performance management, in recognition.

It's all part of creating living values. That when people think of your company, they automatically know that you represent something. It's so ingrained in your company culture, everyone naturally sees it as an important part. It's really important that you lead by example. I've had so many different businesses tell me that they are service first, or they're honest always, or they want to.

Have a core value that lifts up, their employees and is helping them grow. But then you see the owners or the business leaders, the executives do some truly horrendous things. We see it in the news all the time. You have to lead by example. As the business owner, they're leading your actions. Set the tone. So if you have a core value.

Of fun, but then you're not very fun in the office. Is that really a core value?

Your core value needs to be you a living, breathing example. And watch how everybody else follows. 

When you're looking at prospective customers, when you're meeting with them, you need to be thinking, does this customer align with my core values? Or in three months, am I going to be cringing because I'm still working with them? You need to make sure that you set those guardrails for yourself and remember what your core values are. Next episode, we're going to be talking about company vision. And I almost started down that rabbit hole because that's a whole other episode. But the practical tips with your core values digging deep and incorporating it, incorporating in questions you ask, whether it's prospective clients, prospective vendors, or prospective employees, incorporate it in your media, whether it's social media, advertisements, any of those things. Your core values should be an easy example in anything about your company. Now remember, your core values aren't just a poster on the wall, they're the soul of your business. You need to take time to define them. You need to take that time to do that deep dive.  And it can be a bullet pointed list. It does not have to be fancy words. And you need to think about what's important. You need to integrate them in your business. It needs to be a question when you're evaluating opportunities, does this align with who I am? Does this align with the business I want? And you need to make sure that you are true to those core values and then you can watch as they shape your thriving, purposeful workplace.

That's it for today's episode of Simplifying Business with Tonya Sowles. As always, thank you for tuning in, and if you found this episode helpful, please share it with fellow entrepreneurs. And until next time, keep simplifying and thriving.