Why Is Feeling Valued So Important?

As I consider what would be most meaningful for you to read, I know there are leaders who want and may need something that will give them a return on their investment today, but the groundwork for success must be laid in advance.

The results we get today have been made possible by the enablers we put in place long ago. There is a well-established system for success; it is not something we can simply turn on in the moment. Your culture is that system—it is the foundation for decision-making. By that, we mean every team member has made the shift from what is best for them to what is best for the team.

The work we hope to share with you creates that system for transformative and sustainable flow and a successful future that just gets better. But that is not going to change the bottom line today.

Enablers of Peak Performance: Caring as a Guiding Principle

This month, we will focus on the enabling factors that permit people to feel valued. We will share the enablers you can implement in your organization to achieve sustainable Peak Performance through team members who feel valued.

Being valued may be human nature’s most fundamental need, after health and safety. Our lives must have meaning. We each desire to contribute to something greater and utilize our ability to make a difference.

The Guiding Principle of caring is the enabler of living a valued life and a vital component of your foundation for sustainable success. This became even clearer after a retreat with an organization we have been working with for more than twenty years. This is a high-functioning, exceptional team that seeks to get better. They are on a journey to excellence, a journey that has no end; they just get better. As exceptional as this team is, they surfaced an avenue to improvement: gaining and using a deeper understanding of how they cared about and for each other. Yes, caring is one of their Guiding Principles. On their journey, they identified three things that would make them a stronger team in the future. They are proactively seeking to:

• Feel closer to each other
• Have each other’s backs
• Be open to other’s perspectives

We spent the rest of our retreat on how they can achieve these three objectives, and they are energized to become an even stronger team.

I know this sounds like the soft stuff, but its impact is profound, because it connects to feelings that are a part of our human nature. No one wants to be treated like a piece of equipment with no feelings. Each of us desires to be respected and valued, with great potential to make a difference, and worthy of being invested in and cared about. We want to show what we can achieve!

With caring as a Guiding Principle, your team benefits by feeling:

• A sense of belonging – Relationships are everything to us; we are social animals who desire to build communities that care about each other.
• Safety and security – We are in a safe place because of our relationships, and my community has my back.
• Strong self-esteem – My life is valued; I make a difference. Because we feel valued, we are more likely to reach out to others and let them know their life counts too, and they are making a difference. It’s reciprocal and builds upon itself.

All decisions start with feelings. Does it feel right? Does it feel wrong? When we are cared about, we feel valued. When we feel valued, we feel greater confidence in seeking others’ perspectives and are more curious about what could be best for the team. We become less self-centered and more team-centered, enabling the best decision-making and, as a result, ensuring sustainable success.

It starts with team members feeling cared about enough to feel they are living a meaningful and valued life, and the journey gets better.

This month, we will examine how, as leaders and teammates, we can create the energy needed for everyone to feel valued and cared about.