How to Create Business Core Values
The other day I told my husband I am going to make a million dollars in 2025. We were laying in bed and he said, “like over the next 3 years?!” with a little bit of disbelief in his voice. And I said, “no, in the year 2025 I’m going to make a million dollars that year.” He was quiet for a few moments and then said, “but…how???”
I rattled off a bunch of things I’ve had on my mind of where I want my coaching business to go over the next three years and said, “and in 2025 I’ll be at the million dollar mark!”
So, how did I get to this place in my business?
Well, I can assure you it was not overnight. In fact it’s taken me a LONG time to get to a place where my thoughts around money were something along the lines of, “there is an infinite amount of money available to ME”. We’ll get to how I figured out how I will make a million dollars a year in another post - because it’s not as hard as you think!
What does making a million dollars have to do with my Why?!
EVERYTHING!
For a long time my “why” was something to the effect of, “I want to build the life I want to live”. Which is vague and super open ended. A great why, but there's got to be more, right?!
If you’ve taken my yoga teacher training or signed up for my 1:1 coaching you’ll know that I often have my clients go through a passion and core values quiz. It’s something that I did during my yoga teacher training and loved it. Well I recently upgraded the passion and core values quiz to include business core values because I was led through a new variation of it! SO DANG GOOD!
And my mind was blown away with what came up for me! So, I want to know - What’s your “why” for your business? The reason that you got into entrepreneurship?
And before you tell me, “My kids are my why” or your typical one liner - I want you to think deeper than that. I want you to give me more than just one thing. I want to help you dig out 8-10 things or reasons.
Take the time to think about what’s important in your business
Have you ever taken the time to think about what’s important to you in your business? Like - money, success, legacy, etc? Some of these things can also be your “why” or the reason that you’re in business in the first place. And many of you who went through the whole rig-a-ma-role of drafting a 40+ page business plan might have strayed away from your why since you jumped into the world of being an entrepreneur. There’s no shame in that! We all stray - why?! We get into the mundane day-to-day ebb and flow of business. And that can be daunting because before you know it, it’s been 3-5 years and you’re working 80+ hour weeks ALL the time wondering what you’re actually doing other than chasing fires with a bucket half full of water not getting anything done.
Or maybe you’ve never created a business plan (or maybe you just half-assed it). Regardless - no shame in what is in the past. The bonus - you’re getting an upgrade RIGHT NOW for your future! 🥰
Wherever you’re at, you’re ok - you always have the opportunity to change. It’s ok to wake up from the drone of the business drama and want to shift into something more comfortable.
When you start to explore your business core values it can reignite that love and desire to build your dreams bigger!
When I first started photography I would have told you that my “why” or one of my business core values was that I loved the art of photography. When I first bought the yoga studio my “why” would have been to bring movement to the masses. When I started my coaching business my why shifted. It shifted into MORE. It shifted from helping people to creating a legacy, growing generational wealth, lifting others up, being a guiding light - to name a few.
My why grew because I knew I had grown. I used the stepping stones of my previous two businesses to build into what I’ve got today - a growing and THRIVING coaching business. And I just want to say, I’ve barely scratched the surface on what I want to do. I’m so excited that sometimes I don’t even know where to begin!
There are few things in life that are certain - change, death and taxes (🤣). Sounds dreadful when you think about those three together. But over the years I’ve learned that leaning into change can be so much fun. That’s where you get to learn about yourself, dig into your creative side (and yes, 100% of people have creativity within them! That is a hill I am willing to die on 🤣) and uncover what life has in store for you!
You have all the tools you need right in front of you to take the next step forward in whatever your journey is.
Some questions to ask yourself about business core values
Getting back to business core values and passions - I encourage you to take a few minutes and ask yourself “What is important to you in your business, career and life?”
Let’s go through it together - Get out a piece of paper and a pen and write down 8-10 things that are important to you in your business and life. If you’re an entrepreneur chances are your business and life are very commingled and often will play off each other (mine certainly do!). As you develop your list remember it's ok if there’s aspects of both. If you are at the beginning stages of business, coming to a major pivot or even leaving corporate this exercise can be a great first step to really understanding yourself and your business as it is today. This list is your list of core values! Remember these values can be things in your life as well as your business.
A great alternative is to have someone ask you these questions! Sometimes that helps get words out quicker! This is an exercise that I go through with many of my clients! If you need a bit of help, book a 1:1 discovery call (it's FREE) and we’ll dig into this exercise!
Here are mine: create generational wealth, have fun (laugh!), create a legacy, be a thought leader, time freedom, help others, security, sustainable and creativity/be creative
If you’re getting stuck figuring out more than a couple try asking yourself the following questions:
“What does ________ do for you?” - as in, what does having security do for you?
“What does ________ give you?” - as in, what does time freedom give you?
“How does ________ make you feel?” - as in, how does being a thought leader make you feel?
You can also ask yourself questions like, “Will this help move my business forward (or will it hold it back)?”, “Is this going to lead to $5,000 tasks? Or is it going to lead to $5 tasks?” We’ll get into $5 vs $5k tasks in another post! It's such a good topic for anyone who’s feeling stuck in the mundane day-to-day grind of business.
Once you get your 9-10 values it’s time to prioritize your list of business core values!
Start with the top two values - between those two, which would you choose? For example: which is more important, creating generational wealth or having fun? For me, having fun will help me get to generational wealth so that wins. Then, whatever the winner is with your third. For example: what is more important, having fun or creating a legacy. Again, for me, having fun will help me create a legacy. The winner with those two then with your fourth. And so on. Put a little mark next to the winner each time. The one with the most marks is your first value, the second largest is your second and so on.
If you want to take it to the next level, when you have all of your values written down ask yourself, “If I had all of these, what would this give me?”
It’s interesting to see how much you can allow your mind to really take over and grow with this exercise. It can help you discover your why (a deeper meaning!) and it can also give you a sense of direction. Knowing your values and passions can help you create so much more in your business. It can open up opportunities for growth in areas that you never knew possible.
Tell me below - what words came up for you? What values did you come up with? Drop them below!!
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