LEADING WITH VALUES IN TURBULENT TIMES
Bob Marley was once quoted as saying, “The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.”
Albeit slightly terrifying, there’s something especially liberating about taking the daunting plunge of starting your own business. It’s not so much about no longer having a supervisor to answer to or doing away with the operations of other workplaces that just don’t work for you, it’s more than that. At Turnkey, for me, it’s been the opportunity to co-grow the agency within the parameters of a very clear set of values that reflect our own personal and professional commitments, identities, and visions.
We have been very intentional about how we do business as well as who we do and don’t partner with because, at the end of the day, we want to be proud of everything we associate Turnkey with. We might bring in more clients and make more money if we separate what we believe in from how we make a living. However, the two cannot be mutually exclusive. As Marley’s words remind us, what really matters is being able to look at ourselves in the mirror and be proud of the decisions we make and what we put our names behind.
Staying true to ourselves is essential, but it’s not always easy. We find that regardless of what a client sells, promotes, or advocates for, they often struggle to understand where they fit and what they should or shouldn’t do or say. This is where leaders need to decide how to use their voice and platforms. The risks for a business run everywhere from the impact on generic public opinion to how consumers use their dollars to support or reject their stance. Companies like Turnkey state their values from the very start and live by them knowing very well that some customers will choose to go elsewhere, but that comes with the territory.
Recently, a national corporation we connected with had the opportunity to publicly stand up against an injustice, and, as is their right, they chose not to. While individuals undoubtedly were personally interested in stepping up and impacting change, at the end of the day the company’s bottom line was prioritized. The company was unwilling to jeopardize revenue-generating partnerships by speaking out and so they didn’t. In business, we’re often tasked to make decisions at work that we might treat differently at home; can anyone genuinely straddle both?
