There are many different definitions of leadership as well as values that leaders promote. But what makes a leader the true leader and what place do values take in his leadership? When some problems arise there are three different ways we can find decision to solve them: we can use our beliefs to formulate a solution, we can use our values or we can use our intuition. The difference between beliefs and values consists in following: beliefs reflect our past history which is always based on experience and context including our habits and traditions. Usually they are not adaptable to new situations that arise all the time in our unpredictable, chaotic and complex world we live in. Values in decision-making are aligned with our future we want to experience, they do not depend from the past and reflect our life principals we want to live with and identify us as personality. So it is not the surprise to find out that the most successful organizations on the planet are adaptable and values – driving companies. When they have a shared set of values they become more flexible, and when their employees share not only the values of the company but also their vision the performance of the company incredibly enhances. Shared values build trust which is the most important secret of Leadership Success.
The best way to describe values-based leaders is to use Seven Levels of leadership model that is fully described in Liberating the Corporate Soul:
Level 1 reflects concepts of survival and safety. This is the level of the Crisis Director/Accountant. The values are profit, financial stability, self-discipline and employee safety.
Level 2 reflects concepts of relationships and communication. This is the level of Relationship Manager/Communicator. The values are conflict resolution, employee recognition, customer satisfaction and open communication.
Level 3 reflects performance and best practice. This is the level of the Manager/Organizer. The values are results orientation, efficiency, productivity and quality.
Level 4 reflects adaptability and employee participation in decision-making. This is the level of the Facilitator/Influencer. The values are courage, innovation, teamwork and accountability.
Level 5 involves shared values and shared vision. This is the level of the Integrator/Inspirer. The values are enthusiasm, fairness, trust and integrity.
Level 6 deals with community involvement and strategic alliances. This is the level of the Mentor/Partner. The values are environmental stewardship, customer collaboration, employee fulfillment and mentoring.
Level 7 reflects ethics and social responsibility. This is the level of the Wisdom/Visionary. The values are compassion, forgiveness, humility, and ease with uncertainty.
All above mentioned leaders display positive values at all seven levels. Decisions that based on values shift into decisions that based on intuition when the leaders are skilled at each level and could take decisions appropriately and immediately in any arisen situation.
One famous quote from Warren Bennis, Ph.D. in On Becoming a Leader distinguishes management from leadership: “Managers are people who do things right, while leaders are people who do the right thing.”…
