Companies running on EOS® know that articulating and communicating your Core Values is essential to getting the right people in the right seats to help you achieve your vision. That’s because these values define the characteristics that you want every single person in the company to share so you can build the culture you want in your company.
Growing up in Minnesota, a.k.a. the Land of 10,000 Lakes, a fair amount of my childhood was spent on the water. We’d go swimming, boating, and my favorite - canoeing. As a kid, I’d jump in the canoe and take a seat; as the youngest, I was often seated in the middle of the canoe. While this position didn’t require that I paddle, my enthusiasm had me do so anyway as I wanted to participate in our progress. As a youngster, I wasn’t always focused and at times, I was rowing in the opposite direction! My energy was being wasted instead of moving our boat forward. I was dragging my team down because my efforts were not aligned with where we were going.
Once your leadership team discovers your company’s Core Values, it’s time to start using them to lay the foundation of your organization’s culture. To do that, you must have a compelling Core Values Speech.
I had a recent client session end with the team looking a little hangdog and expressing some disappointment. This was an EOS Vision Building™ 1 session, which includes getting the team’s Accountability Chart to about 90% complete and defining their Core Values.
When we dug into their disappointment, here’s what emerged:
So why were they disappointed?
It is always a challenge to keep individuals and organizations focused, but that’s what great leaders do. Distractions abound, but great leaders have an internal compass that keeps them from drifting off course. Two things set your bearings – your why and your what. For companies implementing the Entrepreneurial Operating System®, those two things combine to form your Core Focus™. Once you define your Core Focus, you’ll be less likely to be distracted by “shiny stuff.”
