Shared Practice: Values, Principles, Ethics, and Goals

Think about a time when you interviewed for a job, met someone on a date, or joined a new social group or club. The people you met in those situations had one thing in common—they wanted to get to know you as a person, and—as polite and respectful as they may be in doing so—they had a vested interest in assessing your values, principles, and goals. They may have asked you directly or indirectly about your experiences and your accomplishments, but they were really interested in what makes you a unique individual, what drives you, and whether your principles, values, and goals aligned with theirs.

For the Week 6 Discussion, you will take time to examine and articulate the relationship among your values, principles, and goals. Thinking about these concepts separately can be confusing, as there is significant overlap among all three. Nevertheless, separating these concepts provides you with a significant benefit as a leader in any organization. To be genuine, effective, and authentic, you need to be aware of how your personality relates to your values, principles, and goals. You will be even more effective as a leader if you are able to articulate them and discern the relationship among them. Some experts on leadership have proposed that creating a logical map of these personal characteristics will make you a better leader. You will begin to create that map this week. You begin by examining your values. Then, you will derive ethical principles that originate from those values. Finally, you will chart professional and personal goals that stem from those principles.

To prepare for the Week 6 Discussion, complete the Personal Values Survey by Day 3 of this week. This document can be located in this week’s Learning Resources under Day 2 in the Weekly Dashboard.
◦After taking the Personal Values Survey and reflecting on your results, determine the three character traits for which you scored highest.
◦Then, rephrase them as values that are relevant to you in your professional and personal life. For instance, if one of your strongest character traits is “critical thinking,” your value statement might be: “I value thinking critically about situations in my life.”
◦For each of your top three values, identify three principles that emanate from each one (you will have a total of nine principles). For instance, if your value statement is “I value thinking critically about situations in my life,” your principle might be: “It is important to fully understand a situation before making a decision.”
◦Finally, create a goal that aligns with a principle you have identified. For example, if your principle is, “It is important to fully understand a situation before making a decision,” then your goal might be: “Evaluate career opportunities in my city.”

Post by Day 3, the following:
◦Share your top three values and one principle for each of your top three values. For each principle you have listed, explain to your colleagues why you chose it and what it means to you.
◦Share a goal you have developed that is based on one of your principles. Provide a rationale for why the goal you identified is important and how the underlying principle will help you achieve your goal.

Finally, based on your experience or observations, share what types of challenges you expect and how you might address those so that you can achieve your goal.

To complete your Discussion, click on Discussions on the course navigation menu, and select “Week 6 Forum” to begin.

source to use:
Collins, J. (2005). Level 5 leadership: The triumph of humility and fierce resolve. Harvard Business Review, 83(7/8), 136–146.

Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
The division between organizations that are great and those that are merely good has often been attributed to powerful and charismatic leaders. Jim Collins’ research into companies that lead in their fields, in fact, proves the exact opposite. A “Level 5 Leader” is someone who leads his or her company with vision, perseverance, and, most importantly, humility. Collins discusses the careers and leadership styles of several “Level 5 Leaders” and offers a detailed psychological profile of truly great leaders.
Lencioni, P. M. (2002). Make your values mean something. Harvard Business Review, 80(7), 113–117.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

Corporate values statements, when they are meaningful and sincere, can drive innovation, unify teams, and bring meaning to the work employees do every day. All too often, however, they are insincere, insufficiently integrated into a company’s fabric, or simply unattainable. Lencioni discusses the real worth of corporate values and suggests methods for organizations to create meaningful and effective values statements.
Document: Personal Values Survey (Word document)
This questionnaire will help you to identify and rank your key values for this week’s Shared Practice. Be sure to answer all questions honestly, so that you can obtain the most accurate results.

Ross, J. (2009). How to ask better questions [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://blogs.hbr.org/2009/05/real-leaders-ask/
Excellent leaders do not simply manage their followers to complete projects on time. They also inspire and empower their followers to grow and make increasingly substantial contributions to the organization. This blog entry on best practices for managers will help you explore methods to help your employees tackle problems and create innovative solutions by asking them the right sorts of questions.