It’s not a picture on the wall.

I am sure you have all heard about the importance of values, but why are they so important and what can you practically do to install them and keep people living by them?

I violated the values recently and it hurt my business…

I hired a new CA not too long ago, from the start she was not great, however she was personable, and people liked her. However along the way things happened and irritations began to grow. At first I struggled to put my finger on it, because she could perform when asked to demonstrate tasks but in action she was not so good. Pretty soon it clicked, she simply was not living up to our values. For example, she struggled to ‘turn up on time’, and by that, I mean early. At the end of a shift she would be looking to leave before ‘seeing her tasks through to completion’. She would say a pleasant hello but not hang a patients coat, therefore not demonstrating a ‘big heart’. These things to you may seen harsh, they may seem petty, but they are clear violations of our values. She obviously was meant for better things at another place of work.

But how did I violate the code?

1.       I hired her in the first place, if I had ‘seen my task to completion’, I would have noticed a distinct lack of experience in her CV.

2.       I was not ‘open and honest’ with her early, simply making the excuse to allow more time.

3.       I did not ‘hold loyalty to the team’ by removing a bad apple before it tainted the rest.

Now you will be pleased to know she has moved on, this obviously left us a team member short. But guess what? As soon as she left and our team where short staffed, everyone jumped to the highest level of the values. Staying later, showing up earlier, doing more for our patients. Simply living and breathing everything our values stand for. When that is in motion, it is beautiful.

So how can you ensure you have values that are not simply a picture on the wall?

1.       Know you values and know their meaning.
You have to come up with the values, you have to know them and truly believe in them first.

2.       Live by the values.
Not just at work, if these truly are you. Then you should be seen to (and actually live by) the values daily.

3.       Every conversation back to the values.

This will seem boring initially but pays in the long run, every single conversation you have with the team should be linked back to your values.

4.       Weekly praise.

In your weekly team meetings, take a minute for people to publicly praise another team member, but the key is that praise has to link to a specific action in line with the values.

Do not underestimate the importance of this.

With love,

Tom