When it comes to running a business, there are many important decisions to make. One of the most important is determining your business's values and aligning your day-to-day operations with those values.

For many years I sacrificed my well-being to grow my business even though it was out of alignment with my values. Personal well-being, passion and fulfilment are all integral to what I believe is essential for personal and professional success, yet I didn't live that way. After many years of exhaustion and multiple bouts of burnout, I finally realized that this misalignment was the root problem.

Here are four tips for building a business in alignment with your values.

How Your Values Impact Your Business

As the business owner, you're responsible for setting the tone for your company. If you're constantly stressed and running on empty, it will be hard to communicate a clear vision to your team. This can lead to confusion and frustration, ultimately impacting your bottom line. Understanding your values and aligning your day-to-day operations with them can help keep you and your team motivated, focused and positive.

Your customers also want to know your values and how you are taking action to live them. "Consumers have come to expect companies to adopt a certain level of corporate social responsibility (CSR), and in turn, consumers tend to support companies whose causes they support." Jay Leonard (via business2community)

How to identify your values

There are a few different ways to identify your values. One is to think about what's important to you in life. What do you value most? Another way is to consider what you want people to say about you when you're not around. How do you want to be remembered?

I consider my values a filter that I run all decisions through. Before making a decision, I ask myself, "is this ethical, kind, value-driven, respectful of my boundaries, something I am passionate about and helpful?" Analyzing those decision-making filters helped me identify my core values.

Living Your Values

Here are three practical ways to align your day-to-day operations with your values.

1. Write them down. The first step is to get clear on your values. What is important to you? What do you stand for? When you're clear on your values, it will be easier to make decisions in alignment with them. Make time for self-care. Once you know what's important to you, make time for it.
2. Communicate them often. Once you have your values written down, you must communicate them to your team. This will help everyone be on the same page and work together toward the same goal.
3. Identify Daily Action. Knowing and talking about your values is great, but you must take action in alignment with your values. Determine what daily actions you can take to live your values.
4. At the end of each day, evaluate your decisions. Did you make decisions that were in line with your values? Give yourself a grade from 1-10. Then reflect on how you can make a better decision next time. 

To build your business towards your ultimate vision, living in alignment with your values is important. This means taking the time every day to check in with yourself and see how you're doing. If you're not living in alignment with your values, identify the areas of opportunity and take steps to bring your vision to life.

Write down your values and commit to specific actions each day that will help you live according to them. By doing so, you'll be able to maintain focus and achieve success professionally and personally.

 - Hey Mickey Anderson