Behavior-Based Leadership
and Followership
Training
Founded 2010
We support
APRIL 1, 2025
The Value of Values
So we all talk about our values... Core values, personal values, company values, but why are these important and what is their significance to us as leaders?
According to www.Dictionary.com: Values are: “Something of relative worth, merit, or importance.” So, how does that help us as leaders? The key is in knowing what is important, or has worth, or shows merit, so as a leader we can use them to help us motivate others, as well as ourselves, provide some direction, goals, or vision, especially when there is nothing else to help us determine what to do, or which way to go, or how to behave.
Liberty - Freedom
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But aren’t there different kinds of values? Yes, there are! We could talk about core values, family values, moral values, personal values, spiritual values, and on, and on.... So, let’s consider these in more general terms, and in a way that all types of values may fit into:
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Instrumental and Terminal Values:
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Instrumental values govern the way we pursue our goals and interact with others.
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Terminal values are associated with goals or end states.
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"Our values may be our only guide of behavior."
First, let’s look at Instrumental Values. Since these govern how we pursue our goals and interact with each other, they are going to be extremely important as a leader when it comes to such things as fairness, courage, responsibility, and honesty when working with other people. If we say we value these things (i.e. they are important to us) yet, we don’t treat people fairly, speak or act dishonestly or act cowardly or irresponsibly, then we are not being true to our stated values, and others don’t trust what we say.
Now consider Terminal Values, those important beliefs associated with goals or end states.
Examples of terminal values are: life, justice,
liberty and peace. Consider that the United States
Constitution has some of these terminal values found listed in it. This is how we want things to be. These are the “guiding principles” of our government including the Supreme Court. These things are important to people, not just as employees, but as people in general.
Courage
Fairness
Life
O.K., so what do these have to do with leadership and followership?
When considering your company, organization, family, or even your personal values, you can probably fit them into either Instrumental or Terminal values. (Give it a try...)
Since our values (either Terminal or Instrumental) guide our behavior, in either how we want the end states to be, or how we achieve those end states, they are what make up the idea of your “Character.” Character is defined as: The collective of traits that form the individual nature of a person. So, your collective of traits (based on your Terminal and Instrumental Values) is what makes up your character. Your character is who you are when nobody else is there, or nobody is watching you. (Core beliefs/values)
In high-pressure, uncertain, or morally complex situations, our values often become the only internal compass guiding our behavior as leaders and followers. When policies are unclear, time is limited, or external pressures cloud judgment, it is our deeply held beliefs—such as integrity, fairness, or service—that anchor our decisions and actions. Values provide consistency in chaos, helping us choose the right behavior even when the consequences are unknown or risky. In these moments, leadership and followership are not just roles but reflections of character, as individuals rely on their core principles to lead with courage or follow with conviction.
Putting It All Together:
The value of having values is that we need to have something to guide our behavior, to set our direction, to find what our end states, goals, are. We also need values to help us determine how to get to those end states, or goals. When we have shared values (i.e. family values, spiritual values, societal values, organizational values), then we can lean upon the others with the same instrumental (how we get there) values to help us reach these terminal values or goals (end states). If we didn’t have these values, or don’t let people know what our values are, then we really don’t have much guidance of behavior, and everything is up for grabs!
Quotes to Put into Practice:
“A people that values its privileges above it principles, soon loses both.”
– Dwight D. Eisenhower, U.S. President
“Your beliefs become your thoughts, your thoughts become your words, your words become your actions, your actions become your habits, your habits become your values, your values become your destiny.” – Mahatma Gandhi