There’s a subtle difference between what a leader values and what they value in others. When leaders emphasize what qualities are important in others, team members take notice. Whatever leaders value in others, team members produce more of it and value it as well.
Most leaders, for example, naturally prize people who produce outcomes and results. More conversation, attention, and focus on results will, over time, produce a team that thinks deeply about outcomes and pushes that priority downward throughout the organization.
When leaders value a particular quality in others, they attend to it. The quality or its correlates comes up frequently in interaction. Leaders inquire about it, even if indirectly. They invest the time it takes to focus on and reward for it.
What leaders value in others creates much of the climate on a team. A results-focus comes with the territory. The other qualities leaders emphasize have a critical impact on how the team interacts with each other and with the leader.
Leaders who value the free-flow of ideas, thoughts and opinions create an open dialogue where every viewpoint is held in high esteem. No surprise, that value produces more ideas and creative discussion.
Leaders who value candidness in others let everyone know they want honest and unfiltered views no matter how uncomfortable they may be to raise. Team members become more frank when they know a leader values candidness above other qualities.
Some leaders value experience, others personal character. There’s no right emphasis but the consequences are real. The list of qualities leaders might value in others are expansive: charitable acts, action, kindness, precision, feelings, decisiveness, empathy, hard work, loyalty, and initiative to name just a few.
What you value in others leaks out and reinforces what people share and do. The best leaders do this purposely. They know they can’t value everything, so they make a few choices based upon what they most need from others.
Questions of value loom large for any leader. Valuing results and outcomes is not enough. Good leaders stake out the ground of value for everyone to see and feel. What do you value in others? How do you show it?
