Aligning Personal Values with Business Leadership: A Guide for Entrepreneurs

A few years ago, a good friend and colleague invited me to facilitate a leadership development session at Columbia Business School. We’d worked together for a while, and he was curating a program for young group of aspiring entrepreneurs and business leaders, in conjunction with YPO.

I didn’t know exactly what I was signing up for, but I trusted my guy and went anyways.

I’ve been fortunate to get invited back every year since. A couple weeks ago I delivered my session for the fourth year in a row. Each year the program evolves. Faculty rotates, and I get to meet and network with other facilitators and sit in on their sessions.

This year, I was invited to join an executive leadership session on 'Integrated Leadership,' facilitated by Paul Ingram, a member of the CBS faculty and expert in Leadership & Organizational Behavior.

Paul defined values as "principles of evaluation." It was a new perspective on values unlocked new insights for me, especially as a I discover new ways to lead my business, helping others lead their own.

Our internal values impact every aspect of our leadership journey, especially as entrepreneurs. Some values are true statements, while other values are aspirational pursuits, but each sets and internal expectation and aspiration.

As entrepreneurs, the values and beliefs that we hold, consciously and subconsciously, help us evaluate those around us, including those who we lead within the business. Our values are more than integrated with the way we lead, they are the anchor.

The session uncovered the personal values and beliefs that I hold true are active filters. They define an inner standard of excellence, and more importantly they guide the decisions that uphold it; from navigating tough decisions and taking necessary action, to deciding which situations to engage in vs. walk away from.

Deeply convicted personal values anchor your leadership journey, especially as an entrepreneur. Here are a few of the key takeaways from Paul's session:

Integrated Leadership: Leading Through Your Core Values

Integrated leadership is the ability to influence your organization so that decisions and actions are governed by a set of shared values, beliefs, and standards. People are empowered to think, talk, and act in alignment with the same value system.

As a leader, the you empower everyone to lead, regardless of position or title, by holding the standard up and moving in alignment with what is right, fair, and just according to the standard.

As an entrepreneur, Integrated Leadership starts with how you lead through the lens of your personal values and beliefs, and expands through three levels of leadership: Personal, Interpersonal, and Strategic

By examining the three levels of integrated leadership—personal, interpersonal, and strategic—entrepreneurs can better understand how to align our unique leadership style with our core values, in order to foster authenticity and resilience within our businesses.

Personal Leadership: Leading Self

Key question: How do values shape how you make decisions?

Integrated leadership starts with personal leadership; leading yourself with integrity and self-awareness. Our decisions, big and small, are reflections of our inner beliefs and values. When our actions align with our core values, we build trust with ourselves, and enhance inner confidence and decision-making prowess.

Consider the following steps to integrate your values into personal leadership:

1. Identify Core Values: Spend time reflecting on your core values. Are they honesty, accountability, innovation, or perhaps compassion? Write them down and think about how they influence your daily decisions.

2. Decision-Making Framework: Develop a personal decision-making framework rooted in your core values. When faced with choices, ask yourself which option aligns best with your values.

3. Reflect and Adjust: Regularly reflect on your decisions and their outcomes. Are they consistent with your values? If not, what changes can you make?

By leading yourself through the lens of your values, you build a solid foundation for more significant leadership roles.

Interpersonal Leadership: Leading Others

Key question: How do your values shape how you lead or allow yourself to be led by others?

Leadership extends beyond self to include how we influence and interact with others. Interpersonal leadership is about guiding teams and building relationships grounded in mutual respect and shared values. It's crucial to recognize that how we lead others is significantly shaped by our personal beliefs and values.

Here’s a few insights to align your interpersonal leadership with your core values:

1. Communicate Clearly: Make your values known to your team. Clear communication establishes a foundation of trust and transparency.

2. Model the Way: Demonstrate your values through your actions. Consistency between your words and actions builds credibility and encourages your team to embody these values.

3. Foster a Values-Based Culture: Encourage team members to reflect on and share their values. Create an environment where diverse values are respected and integrated into the team’s mission and goals; people thrive when they can see personal wins within the context of team wins.

Leading others through a values-based approach not only enhances team cohesion but also empowers individuals to lead from their position or role with authenticity and integrity.

Strategic Leadership: Leading the Organization

Key question: How do your values shape how you lead an organization and develop a culture?

Strategic Leadership involves steering your business towards a vision that aligns with its core values. It requires more than setting goals. You must also create a culture where those values are embedded in every aspect of the business.

To integrate your values into strategic leadership:

1. Vision and Mission Alignment: Ensure that the organization’s vision and mission statements reflect your core values. This alignment provides a clear direction and purpose for all team members and stakeholders.

2. Values-Driven Policies: Develop policies and practices that embody your values. Whether it's ethical business practices, commitment to innovation, or social responsibility, let your values guide your strategic decisions.

3. Cultivate a Value-Based Culture: Leadership at this level is about embedding values into the organizational culture. Recognize and reward behaviors that reflect these values, and provide training and development to reinforce them.

By leading strategically through your values, you create an organization that is not only successful but also meaningful and sustainable.

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