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Key Takeaways Core values are most meaningful when they guide behavior both at work and at home.
Authenticity, reliability, growth and trust should be practiced consistently across all areas of life.
When leaders make decisions through a values lens and show up as the same person in every room, they build stronger relationships, cultures and organizations.
When I think about core values, I don’t think about something that is only posted on a wall. I think about whether I can carry the same version of myself from work to home and back again.
As entrepreneurs, we always have to be “on.” At work. At home. At work again. And I have witnessed myself, and others, be one version at home and something different at work. The truth is that being a separate self in each place becomes overwhelming and exhausting.
Authenticity is one of my core values. Yes, it is posted on our wall at the office, but it’s so much more than that. I see authenticity as being directly tied to consistency. The person making decisions in the office should be the same person sitting at the dinner table. That alignment matters more than any mission statement or value posted on a website or in your lobby.
Reliability as identity
Early in my career, a manager once told me, “If I give something to Thiru, he will get it done.” That feedback stayed with me through multiple job changes and became part of my identity. I want to be that trustworthy and reliable person, whether I’m dealing with employees, customers, family or friends.
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