Values and Trust in Leadership
In our company, we're fortunate to work with myriad executives and leaders. We’ve found that to encounter a leader who intentionally identify his or her own values is a very rare thing. Most people simply react based on what feels right. But the leaders who do the painstaking work to specifically identify and articulate their values, those are the ones who people really, deeply trust.
On that note, I’d like to share three values that are my own personal and professional anchors as a leader:
Faithfulness: My father (and business partner) Kevin Turner and my grandfather Quip “Buck” Turner are the “picture” of Faithfulness. My grandfather (my namesake) was a sharecropper in Alma, George, and I wish I’d known him more before he passed away. The stories I’d hear about him left a deep impression on me. My father and I have worked very closely together the past seven years, so I’ve seen him through the lens of intentional leadership. I’ve never met a person more faithful to their word.
For me, Faithfulness means being responsible, reliable and consistent. Responsible in that I use and build on the resources at my disposal. Reliable in that my commitments are measured, so that others know I’ll do what I say. Consistency means that I apply myself and my resources based on principle and priority, not based on how I feel at the moment. Success is built not on short-spurt strides of greatness, but on commitment to small, high-yield actions on a regular basis.
Service: Service is the guaranteed, accelerated path to transformation. But it must be done with true humility, vs. self-deprecation. Service requires a person to inquire and understand others’ needs. These needs may be spoken or un-spoken. But the act of service is in both discovering and answering the need.
Service is such a powerful, transformative action because it’s about needs, not value. To truly serve someone else requires that I simultaneously place their needs above my own, yet recognize that we are equal in value (dignity); neither of us is above the other. When perceived value is balanced, the act of service will neither be opportunistic, nor condescending.
Learning: Finally, Learning is the core value that feeds all others because it’s sparked by curiosity, then followed by action, which causes long-term growth.
For example, my core value of Service will always be enhanced by my value of Learning because I’ll learn how to inquire and ask better questions about others’ needs (customers, my family, etc.). Of course, the better questions I ask, the more I understand their needs, and the more I really, truly add value where it was missing before.
In the area of Faithfulness, the core value of Learning causes me to investigate what is at my disposal and the full value I can add with my resources. On top of that, by investing in my own Learning, I figure out how to build on what’s at my disposal.
But the most important aspect of Learning (for me at least) is that it shatters the belief that Courage and Humility are at odds. Albert Einstein said, “As our circle of knowledge expands, so does the circumference of darkness surrounding it.” In describing that which is unknown as “darkness”, Einstein gets to the heart of what keeps most people from Learning – fear. I think the greatest power of living by Learning as a core value is that, for the sake of growth, it causes a person to Humbly acknowledge the fact that there’s a whole lot left to learn and Courageously expand their breadth of knowledge.
What are your values?
What are the anchors you reference in order to modulate your emotions and mitigate distractions?
Your trustworthiness is your primary competitive advantage as a leader. Trust me.
- Quip