THE POWER OF CORE VALUES

Posted: 09/12/2018; Last Edited: 09/12/2018

By Coach Ryan

Core values help you establish purpose. A purpose-driven team arguably has the highest potential for success. As a coach, your number one responsibility is to help establish the team’s purpose. What better way to establish this purpose than by discovering not only your own core values, but also your team’s? You can’t just have core values, you have to live them! Too often you’ll see or be part of a team that displays their core values on the wall, yet if you asked a random team member “What are your team's core values?” I would be willing to bet they have no clue. I would even bet most people would not be able to tell you their own personal values. Values are so important because they should be at the very core of everything you do as an individual and as a team. They should not only be posted everywhere but they should be talked about in every decision made. People must be able to call upon their core values because when times get tough it will be necessary to lean on those values.

Imagine you’re a recruit: You walk into a potential coach's office and on the wall are his or her core values. Then imagine the coach giving you a recruiting speech with key points that encompass the same core values listed on the wall. As a potential student-athlete, you know exactly what that coach stands for and what they can do for you during your time at the University. Now imagine yourself as that recruit’s parent and how comforting it must feel to know exactly where your son or daughter’s coach is grounded.

Your team is always looking for guidance. What better way than to have your own core values to let your team know how you make your decisions? I would also suggest you discuss with your student-athletes what their team core values should be. Don’t just tell them! They will never buy in. It has to come from them. Facilitate the conversation and guide your team to create a strong set of core values. If everyone is on the same page, it can pay off huge dividends. When times are bad, your team can either turn towards negative coping or positive coping. Put the fire out ahead of time with core values.

Various core values have been taught to me across my entire life. My parents, family, wife, school and friends have continually demonstrated positive values to me throughout my life. However, recently I realized that I have never looked at all these values and determined which are the most important to me personally. While I have always lived by a common few, I never really put that much thought into which values I live by and why. After facilitating a leadership retreat at Ohio State, I witnessed just how powerful it can be to have a set of core values. These core values don’t have to be etched in stone. In fact, they should occasionally be reevaluated. As you evolve in life, so will your core values and the explanations for them. Below I have listed my own and given a brief explanation on why I chose to live by each particular core value. I hope to return to these in a few months and evaluate them again. If you are struggling to come up with your own core values then I would suggest taking the DiSC Assessment or StrengthsFinder 2.0. If you have the funds I would suggest doing both. They both offer valuable insights. If you are looking to do these with a team on an annual basis, I would suggest alternating between those two tests.

While core values do not have to define you entirely as a person, I do believe that they can help guide you in many of your decisions especially when you come across tough life decisions. If you begin to question yourself, you can always fall back on your core values and determine whether or not the decision you are about to make falls within those values. For that reason, it is very important you not only choose your core values, but also have a strong understanding of why you chose them. The more specific the better. As time goes on, the explanation or maybe even the core value will change, which is perfectly fine, but at least you have that compass to guide you.

Want to discover the power of core values? Here are a list of values to help get the brain thinking!

https://scottjeffrey.com/core-values-list/

COURAGE

EDUCATION

EMPOWER

PASSION

RESPECT

Coach Ryan’s Core Values (C.e.e.P.R.)

Here are my personal core values and the explanations of why I chose those values for myself. In time, I expect the words and explanations to change, but for now, I know where my compass points. As you may notice, I also affiliated an emoji with each value. Messages can be even stronger if you can give a visual aid and relate to your core audience. And because I love acronyms, I have also arranged the core values as “C.e.e.P.R.” (read as “C-Double e-P-R). This acronym will serve as a powerful reminder that my core values can save me time and effort in the decision making process. The easier your core values are to remember, the more powerful they will be during stressful situations!

Courage

(Noun) the ability to do something that frightens one.

I love this definition of courage! I think we have all heard the quote or something similar to “If your goals don’t scare you, they aren’t big enough.” Don’t get me wrong. Goals should never be so high that they are unreachable. They should lie just above your current abilities, teetering on the line of achievable and crazy. I am a strong believer that everyone should chase their scary dreams. But for someone to really pursue their dreams they must have courage to push past that fear. Starting a journey towards a dream is the hardest part. Of course there will continue to be obstacles, doubts and fears along the way, but at least you have begun the journey. The journey is where the real learning can begin.

Education

(noun) an enlightening experience.

Your education is the number one thing that sets you apart from anyone else in the world. Unfortunately, so many people forget that education goes beyond the classroom or a book. We should constantly being seeking ways to educate ourselves. If you fail to educate yourself you will instantly fall behind and seperate yourself further from your goals. Don’t let your degree or industry limit your breadth of knowledge. You can grow in so many different facets. Especially in today's age of information sharing, no one has an excuse to not be expanding their education.

Empower

(verb) make someone stronger and more confident, especially in controlling their life and claiming their rights

This word encompasses my life mission. I want to empower those around me. I want to see them succeed. For a long time I thought my mission in life was geared towards creation and innovation. Naturally, I was lead to engineering. For a good while I thought it was the perfect fit for me. However, as time progressed, I realized I was missing something. I was missing the Human element. My father ingrained leadership skills into me since birth. Throughout my life I have held leaderships positions within my schooling, career and athletics. I have always enjoyed the puzzles that come with leading a group of people toward a common goal. Coaching has given me an opportunity to combine my leadership skills with my creative abilities.

Passion

(noun) an intense desire or enthusiasm for something.

Anyone who knows me will say that I bring lots of passion into whatever I do. I am a strong believer that anything worth doing is worth doing to the fullest! I will tackle the toughest problems head first because I don’t know any other way. To be honest, the strategy has brought me more success than downfall. Lots of people see my schedule and wonder how I have time for any social life. While it is true that I am busy, I work because I have a goal in mind. It’s a scary big goal. Without passion, I would have no chance of achieving my goal because burnout would set in quickly. Remember that passion doesn’t come automatically. Everyday I am thinking of ways to keep myself motivated and focused on the main goal. In the words of Kobe Bryant, I must keep a “Mamba Mentality.” I have a long road ahead and I can’t simply depend on a fleeting feeling of motivation. I must surround myself with positive thoughts, people and media. For me coaching is my passion. Coaching lives within me.

Respect

(noun) due regard for the feelings, wishes, rights, or traditions of others.

Respect is as simple as the definition! Whether a friend or foe, respect should be shown toward everyone at all times. I don’t expect everyone to love each other, but they should respect each other. Respect one’s skills, time, efforts, opinions, etc. With any team I have coached or been part of, the number one roadblock has been with issues regarding respect. As a coach, a successful culture built around respect starts with me.