A value is a belief, a mission, or a philosophy that is meaningful.
Whether we are consciously aware of them or not, every individual has a core set of personal values. Values can range from the commonplace, such as the belief in hard work and punctuality, to the more psychological, such as self-reliance, concern for others, and harmony of purpose. When we examine the lives of famous people, we often see how personal values guided them, propelling them to the top of their fields. For example, one actor was motivated by his commitment to social justice, which led to important acting roles related to that value that made him world famous.Likewise, a well-known business CEO was motivated by the personal value that technology should be easy to use, which caused his company to spawn a technology revolution.
Whatever one's values, when we take them to heart and implement them in the smallest details of our lives, great accomplishment and success are sure to follow. Just as individuals subscribe to values, so do organizations and institutions. In fact, if we were to examine any company, we would discover that one or more business values was the key to their success. Examples are -- -- Sears' commitment to trusting the customer.From the 19th century onward, any product could be returned to the company with a money back guarantee, which engendered great trust in both directions, enabling booming sales, and, the great success for the firm that followed.
] -- Apple Computer's belief in the values of solving problems of society. [The company created the IPod player and ITunes online music store to overcome a conflict between those who sought to download copyrighted music for free and the music industry which sought to protect its artists and its revenues. -- Marriott's values of systemization and standardization. [The company created a standard model hotel, and then duplicated it hundreds of time around the world, enabling it to grow incredibly fast, and become the leader of its industry. ] Likewise, we see how political parities and politicians subscribe to certain core values -- ranging from helping the poor, easing the burden of the middle class, improving the environment, making government responsive and efficient, engendering loyalty and unity, and so forth.
The key point to keep in mind about values is that implementing them energizes everything concerned with it. For an individual, committing to and applying values releases fresh energies, which always attract success, achievement, and well-being. Likewise, when companies or other institutions adopt values, individuals working at the organization become energized, as do its customers, its products and services, and everyone and everything else associated with that organization.
