Friday at last! And time for another Fortune Cookie Friday interpretation of a folded confection’s inner wisdom.
“Your principles mean more to you than any money or success.”
By definition, according to Merriam Webster, a principle is “a comprehensive and fundamental law, doctrine, or assumption.”
We all have principles, but I doubt that most of us give them the attention of our conscious thought. In fact, I don’t recall ever really sitting down to take inventory of the “comprehensive and fundamental laws, doctrines, and assumptions” that guide me in my personal and professional life. What about you?
Principles run in the background for the most part. They subconsciously keep us on track ethically and they drive our motivation. As solopreneurs and small business owners, most of us strive for some level of money and success. But obtaining either of those is far greater if you’ve got principles like these guiding your efforts:
Your underlying principles might be similar; they might be different. Either way, you’ve got some whether you’ve pointedly thought about them or not. Why not take a few minutes to reflect on them and how they’re driving your efforts at work and at home?
I’d love to hear from you! Comment here to share your guiding principles. Do we have any in common?
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Well stated, Dawn. As one of a handful of real estate brokers who has taught ethics in my state, I have used a warm-up exercise in my classes to demonstrate the differing values we all bring to the table. Dividing the class into small groups of five or so, I give each an envelope containing forty words such as family, integrity, fun, communication, honesty, etc., I then ask them as a group to select twenty from the pile setting the others aside. A few minutes later, the remaining words are winnowed down to ten, five, lastly three. This exercise compels five very different people to find commonality in their belief systems as well as mutually agreeable benchmarks for what is deemed central to their business and personal lives. Invariably, there is disparity, disagreement, contention, but ultimately always compromise and acceptance. This illustrates best how, in our society, while we may hold differing viewpoints and principles, we remain adaptable and able to find that all important place where business may actually get done…with integrity, honesty and competence.
Thanks, Tyler! And thank you for sharing that great exercise for discovering common ground – and for learning to understand differences! I just might suggest that we try it with a few of the committees I’m on. As always, I appreciate how you expand on my topics with information and insight that’s valuable to all of us!