[Alicia Davis] Hello, I’m Alicia Davis.

[Stacie Watson] And I’m Stacie Watson.

[Alicia Davis] We are the founders and co-owners of Transformative Leadership Strategies, a coaching, training, and team-building company. And we want to thank you so much for downloading our guide on How to Skyrocket Your Confidence as a Leader. And confidence as a leader is so important, Stacie. And we hear it all the time in the coaching, the training, the people that we work with, and why did we put this together for our folks?

[Stacie Watson] Well, as you mentioned, confidence is a critical factor in leadership. And it’s also a really big word. You know, it means so many different things to different people, it shows up in different ways. The kind of confidence we need at one moment might look and feel a little different than in another moment. And so we just decided to try and take this really big word, and make it a little bit more understandable by breaking it into some factors that we sort of think about each of which contributes to how confident we feel in any given moment. And that’s really the backbone of the guide.

[Alicia Davis] That’s right. And so in your guide, if you have it in front of you, great. If not, that’s okay, too. There’s a confidence wheel and these confidence factors. So today, we’re talking about connection to core values. And connection to core values many, many of us, you know, sometimes we know what our core values are, and sometimes we don’t. And so we wanted to take a minute to really explain what exactly are core values? And why are they important and leadership? Stacie?

[Stacie Watson] Well, we give you a little definition in the guide. And so when we think about core values, it’s really being able to understand, you know, know, and understand the values that are most important to you. And then here’s the important part for leadership is making sure that those values are present in your work life. We would also say in your personal life. In other words, there’s a certain amount of alignment that we feel when we’re able to live our values kind of wherever we are. And when we are outside of alignment with those values that can be challenging, especially for leaders. And I think this is one of the things that can really help us feel more confident, the more connected to our core values that we can feel and be.

[Alicia Davis] That’s right. That’s right. And, you know, I know that I know that you love to tell stories, and we would love to hear a story about core values.

[Stacie Watson] Yeah, I’ll tell a quick one. I was doing some coaching with a woman and she and her team had been sent to work at home. And she loved her job, she loved her work, she loved her team, she loved her boss. And we were doing some coaching because she just was feeling not quite right. And she couldn’t figure out why. And so as we often do, we started with a core values exercise, and she realized one of her core values was connection. And in the conversation around that particular value, she realized her feelings and sense about connection had really shifted when she went to work at home. And so of course, it didn’t mean she needed to find another job, at least that wasn’t her solution, she just had to find new ways to feel connected. And once she had that awareness, she was able to put some new practices in place, and they really helped. So it’s a simple example of how understanding our values can help inform the sort of the experience that we might be having, and even help us make decisions about what to do next.

[Alicia Davis] That’s right. That’s right. So as you think about your own values, or even how connected you feel, to your own values, you know, as you on the on the wheel on that scale of one to 10 if one would be more like, oh, I don’t even really know what my values are. And 10 is I feel really, I feel really strong. I feel really clear. And I feel like I’m living those values at work, at home. Great wherever you are on that, on that self-assessment, just notice what’s working well. And if there’s one area that you think, oh, if I could pay a little bit more attention to my values, that would really help me feel more successful and more confident. And we would love to know what that is for you. So feel free to email us info@tlstransforms.com and let us know what you think about connection to core values. Thanks so much.

[Stacie Watson] Thank you.