Providing customers and your company an outsized return on investment is not only the key to building personal wealth, it's the key to remaining in business or employed in a competitive environment.
Whether you're a solopreneur, entrepreneur or employee, providing value to your customers and the people you work with is NEVER NOT IN FASHION.
You may have the skill set of a person who is adequate for "the job", but do you possess the character traits of a person who offers extreme value to an organization?
Do you bring a set of core character traits that predict success and provide your organization a 5x return on investment?
The following are 5 Characteristics of a Value-Driven Professional as outlined by Donald Miller in his must-read book for business owners and operators, Business Made Simple: 60 Days to Master Leadership, Sales, Marketing, Execution, Management, Personal Productivity and More.
Ignore them at your own peril. I'm trying hard to ignore work on #4 myself. 😊
1. Value-driven professionals see themselves as an economic product on the open market
A smart business owner or team member will always look for ways to make customers or the business they work for more and more money so they can continue to be worth a percentage of a greater and greater number.
You become more successful when you make other people successful.
People who are obsessed with being a good investment attract further investment and get to enjoy more personal economic value.
When you're an investment that gets a return, you attract business responsibilities, promotions, and greater compensation.
2. Value-driven professionals see themselves as heroes, not victims
When you see yourself as a victim, people either feel sorry for you or feel good about themselves while trying to rescue you.
In a story, the victim exists only to make the villain look bad and the hero look good. it's a bit part. The victim is a character with no way out. They need to be rescued by the hero.
Victims do not lead the charge to a fight, don't rescue others, don't gain strength, and never overcome the villain on their own.
Some people have more to overcome than others. But the more you overcome, the greater your heroic story.
You're not a victim. You're a hero on a mission to transform the world. Start playing YOUR part today.
3. Value-driven professionals know how to de-escalate drama
Want to kill your career? Be a drama king (or queen) that constantly brings attention to him or herself and sucks the energy out of a room. That'll do it.
We respect and trust people who can remain calm, remove themselves emotionally from a situation, and respond to drama in a calculated way.
Our emotions don't have to become actions. We gain respect and are chosen to lead when we stay cool under pressure drama.
4. Value-driven professionals accept feedback as a gift
While it can be hard to accept and process feedback (especially when uninvited), the ability to do so is a sign of maturity that can serve as a secret weapon to becoming a powerful, value-driven professional.
If your company does not run a system in which you receive regular feedback, schedule monthly meetings with a mentor or colleague you work with in some capacity. Choose someone who has your best interest at heart and establish a set of routine questions, such as:
- Have you seen me act unprofessionally?
- Have you noticed that I've been missing something lately?
- What can I improve upon?
After they provide feedback, ask them if they're leaving something out. This often leads to useful insights.
Lastly, thank them for their feedback (a cup of coffee?) and then apply what they shared to your work. Feedback is meaningless unless it is used to change and take action.
Note to self.
5. Value-driven professionals know the right way to engage in conflict
All human progress happens when we pass through conflict. Healthy conflict and success go together like peanut butter and jelly (or vodka and juice). That's why people who avoid conflict are rarely chosen to lead. When we avoid conflict, we're avoiding success.
Good leaders don't avoid conflict, they navigate it in a way that benefits them and everyone around them. They make conflict healthy.
How?
- They expect conflict. They understand conflict is not wrong. It is a by-product of collaboration and progress.
- They control their emotions. They understand conflict gets out of hand when it becomes personal, so they remain calm and reasonable as they engage in conflict.
- They affirm the person they're confronting. They understand people feel threatened when confronted, so they make sure to affirm and respect, even as they confront.
- They understand they could be wrong. They always remember the point of conflict is progress, not proving they are right.
If you want to succeed in work, love, friendship, and life, give the people around you a great return on whatever it is they invest in you. This is the secret to success. That's it.
Wanna learn more about how you can become an undeniable value-driven professional in a competitive environment? Order Business Made Simple: 60 Days to Master Leadership, Sales, Marketing, Execution, Management, Personal Productivity and More and get started on your journey to becoming a value-generating machine today.
Stay alert. Stay educated. And most importantly, stay cool.
Have a great week!
Talk soon,
Old Man Winter
