Episode 34
Vision + Values = Success: The Key to Building a Purposeful Business and Life
Episode Summary
Welcome to another episode of "A Whole Lotta Shift." I'm your host, Jen Ingram, and in today's episode, we're diving deep into the topic of vision and values. We'll explore why it's crucial to have clarity on your vision and values as it relates to your goals and your business.
During this coffee chat episode, we'll discuss the role of values as a guide or compass for making decisions and setting behaviors that align with your goals. We'll explore how having a clear vision and values can make difficult decisions easier, help you tune in to what truly matters to you, and attract like-minded individuals into your life and business.
Join us as we explore examples of how values have influenced business decisions and share stories from our community members. So grab a cup of coffee, sit back, and let's delve into the power of vision and values in creating a purpose-driven and successful business.
But before we jump in, I'd like to extend a warm welcome to everyone joining us in the Facebook group. If you're not in the group yet, be sure to join us to access valuable resources and connect with a supportive community. It's a great place to share your insights and learn from others who are also on their journey towards clarity and growth.
So, get ready to gain valuable insights and inspiration as we explore the world of vision and values. Let's get started with this week’s episode of "A Whole Lotta Shift."
About the Host:
Jen is a Dream Catalyst and Business Mentor saving hustling female solopreneurs from the chains of corporate America. Her passion lies in helping women through their self awakening so they can finally break free, turn their side hustle into the business of their dreams, and live a life full of time, location and financial freedom.
Jen is a California girl at heart, now living out her dream in the Midwest, traveling, coaching female solopreneurs and sharing her own story of triumph and empowerment across speaking platforms. When she's not traveling, she enjoys spending time with her college aged son and her rescued Pit Bull.
After 20 years of various project manager and corporate trainer roles while juggling a wide array of side gigs, she has mastered the ability to help women see what they cannot see, believe they are meant for more and take aligned action to make it happen. With an MBA in Change Management, and a Health and Life Coach Certification from the Health Coach Institute, Jen is an expert at creating both the business process changes and the personal habit changes needed to finally Break UP with corporate and go all-in on your side hustle or long standing passion project.
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Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jenelleingram/
Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/wholelottashift/
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Free Gift: https://mailchi.mp/4f4ae02ebe45/beat-the-odds
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Transcript
It's also gonna be one of those things that's really gonna
Speaker:help you tune into yourself and identify what matters for you.
Speaker:I know sometimes that sounds maybe a little cliche when you hear the
Speaker:terms, you know, listen to your gut you know, listen to your intuition
Speaker:and you think, oh God, what?
Speaker:I don't know.
Speaker:My intuition steered me wrong before.
Speaker:Hello and welcome to another episode of a whole lot of shift.
Speaker:I'm your host, Jen Ingram, and this week we are talking about vision and
Speaker:values and why it's so important to have clarity on your vision and values as it
Speaker:relates to your goals and your business.
Speaker:All right, so first of all, I just wanna give a very warm welcome to everybody.
Speaker:If you were in the Facebook group, then you're getting to watch this live, and
Speaker:if you're in the group, then you also were able to connect with my Monday
Speaker:mindset, in which I asked all of you to spend some time each day throughout
Speaker:the week, really thinking about what your bigger vision is for yourself.
Speaker:And your business and really tuning into thinking about what your vision is in the
Speaker:largest context that you can think of it.
Speaker:And I'm gonna get into a little deeper conversation about
Speaker:that here in just a moment.
Speaker:But if you're not in the group and you didn't have an opportunity to
Speaker:catch the Monday mindset, then I strongly encourage you to come join us.
Speaker:It's a great community and there are so many tips and tricks, and
Speaker:obviously Monday mindsets that are shared right in the group.
Speaker:And I would love to have you join us.
Speaker:. All right, so today we are talking about those vision and
Speaker:values and why this matters.
Speaker:And so I really just want to start, and I touched on this a little bit in
Speaker:the Monday mindset, but really your values kind of act as your guide.
Speaker:Or your compass for your goals for yourself and your business.
Speaker:These are the values that you have, is what's gonna help guide your behaviors
Speaker:and your decisions that you're making as it relates to your goals and
Speaker:the direction that you want to go.
Speaker:So, for example, if you think about a time where you were really struggling or
Speaker:maybe you had a very difficult decision to make as it may relate, whether
Speaker:this be life or business, I think this can apply anywhere across the board.
Speaker:Then you probably know that having a very clear vision of what your values
Speaker:are was really important because when you weren't clear on what your
Speaker:values are, it's going to make . It's going to make making a decision that
Speaker:much more difficult for you, right?
Speaker:Being clear on your vision is really gonna help those challenging decisions
Speaker:that you may encounter just be a little bit easier because they're going to
Speaker:act as the framework or the guide.
Speaker:I think in Monday's mindset, I think I may have used the term compass, right?
Speaker:It's really kind of guiding you along so that you can evaluate your
Speaker:choices and what feels good for you.
Speaker:I would really encourage you that that might not be true.
Speaker:That might be a tricky thought that you have because likely it may have been
Speaker:something more about your values and not having the clear clarity that you need in
Speaker:those values so that they can act as the framework and guide you in the direction
Speaker:that you really want to be going.
Speaker:If you think about this, like one example that I thought of was and
Speaker:one of my values is integrity.
Speaker:And when you think about that, it really allows for any decision that I may have
Speaker:in my life or business to be so much simpler for me because when I identify
Speaker:something that doesn't leave me feeling.
Speaker:Though I am acting in integrity, then I know that that's just
Speaker:not something that I'm gonna do.
Speaker:So, perhaps a good example of this it's really important to me that whatever
Speaker:I'm asking of somebody else to do, especially in my coaching business,
Speaker:what I'm asking you to try something or to do something, it's really
Speaker:important to me that I'm not asking you to do something I myself have maybe
Speaker:Never tried, have no experience in doing.
Speaker:You know, and, and yet asking and assuming, oh, this should just be simple.
Speaker:I'm gonna ask this of you.
Speaker:It's really important to me that I am always kind of, I guess you
Speaker:could say, setting the example.
Speaker:You know, I always want to . Consider the things that I've maybe tried in the
Speaker:past, what worked well, what didn't, and I enjoy being able to try out various
Speaker:things so that when I'm working with a client and I'm working one-on-one with
Speaker:them, I know that whatever I'm asking you to do is either something that I've
Speaker:tried and I can intelligently speak to.
Speaker:But it, it also helps keep me within integrity.
Speaker:I know that I'm just not blowing smoke.
Speaker:This isn't something that I just heard about from some Go guru, and
Speaker:now I'm trying to ask you to try it.
Speaker:It's really important to me that I would never ask you to do something
Speaker:that I would never personally consider for myself either.
Speaker:So that's just one example.
Speaker:But it's not just about . Decision making, although that is a very important
Speaker:part of your business and your life.
Speaker:I wanna be clear, as I'm speaking about vision and values, it's really important
Speaker:that we're thinking about who we wanna be and how our business fits into our
Speaker:life and not the other way around.
Speaker:We shouldn't be building our life around our business, right?
Speaker:So it's not just about values helping you make the right decisions.
Speaker:It's also about.
Speaker:Who you're attracting into your energy field, into your life, whether
Speaker:this be, you know, . Friendships, relationships clients, customers.
Speaker:When you are standing in a firm place of understanding what your values are
Speaker:and sticking to them, you're going to start attracting other people who have
Speaker:the same values as you, and they're gonna start coming into your world.
Speaker:It's going to make those interactions a lot easier, so it's.
Speaker:It's the decisions that you're making, it's, it helps the interactions that
Speaker:you're having and it really helps guide all your behaviors and actions that you're
Speaker:doing on a regular basis and that you're doing and working on towards your goals.
Speaker:I'm kind of curious.
Speaker:If you're in the group and you're live, if you know of a time when
Speaker:maybe a value that you felt very strongly about helped you make an easy
Speaker:business decision, go ahead and share that in the comments and curious.
Speaker:If you really sit down and think about it, you probably realize that there's been.
Speaker:Several business decisions that you've made in the past, or maybe it wasn't
Speaker:a business decision, maybe it was a life decision that then impacted your
Speaker:business, but it was that much more, it was that much more . It was that
Speaker:much easier for you to make because you were clear on what your values are.
Speaker:Maybe those values are family time freedom.
Speaker:For me, I li I listed one, which was integrity.
Speaker:It could be independence.
Speaker:There's, there's a wide range of values that you might have, so I'm curious if,
Speaker:if you, in talking about this today, or thinking about it throughout the
Speaker:week, were you able to identify a time in which you had a lot easier time
Speaker:making a decision about your business?
Speaker:Because you were clear on those values and those values help
Speaker:guide you to that decision.
Speaker:Go ahead and share down in the comments I'd love to hear.
Speaker:Alright, so I kind of just gave a background on the values and why this
Speaker:is so important, whether this is for life or business or what have you, but.
Speaker:As I was saying, the way that it helps guide your behaviors, really think
Speaker:about your values, helping you create an aligned vision for yourself so that you
Speaker:have the success that you're seeking.
Speaker:Because if you have a vision and it's not in complete
Speaker:alignment with your values, then.
Speaker:It's like you are on, you are on a, you're on the wrong path.
Speaker:You are on a path that's probably going to a destination that you
Speaker:don't necessarily wanna be on.
Speaker:Actually, when I think about it that way, in fact, I'm kind of curious,
Speaker:you may have experienced this before.
Speaker:Have you ever started down a path and you, you started down a certain
Speaker:path and you got about halfway there and you realized, wait.
Speaker:This, this really isn't what I want after all.
Speaker:Maybe it was a path that was heavily influenced by someone else in your life
Speaker:or maybe it was a path that you wanted to try out because it was something
Speaker:that all the gurus told you to do.
Speaker:But you start going down that path and you realize, this just doesn't feel right.
Speaker:This is not in alignment with my values and.
Speaker:This is why having those values . And having the clarity on what
Speaker:they are is really going to help you with your bigger vision.
Speaker:It's really going to act as that compass or that north star that's going to
Speaker:keep you on the path that is truly your path and not someone else's that's
Speaker:gonna help you stay in alignment so that when you are listening to someone
Speaker:else, you know, and and I'm just gonna throw this out there, the, the business
Speaker:gurus Or, or whatever it may be.
Speaker:Those values are going to help you say, okay, hold on.
Speaker:I hear what this person's saying, but you know what, this is not in alignment with
Speaker:the bigger vision that I have of myself.
Speaker:It's those values that are gonna help you determine how to get there.
Speaker:So if you think about it, I asked you all.
Speaker:During the week from the five minute mindset to spend a few minutes
Speaker:a day really thinking about your vision for yourself and for your
Speaker:business in a much larger context.
Speaker:So, Here's what I mean by that.
Speaker:When you are thinking about your vision, this is a little bit different
Speaker:than just thinking about your goals.
Speaker:Your goals are the action steps, typically or the smaller pieces that are going
Speaker:to build up to your larger vision.
Speaker:So, I'm gonna use weight loss as an example.
Speaker:Okay?
Speaker:A goal might be, I wanna lose 20 pounds, you know, in the next five months.
Speaker:Okay?
Speaker:That's a goal.
Speaker:That's specific.
Speaker:But when you think about your larger vision, why do you wanna lose the weight?
Speaker:What is it that you're wanting to be able to do?
Speaker:So this is how you can kind of think of your.
Speaker:Vision as your why behind your goals.
Speaker:So you might find, okay, well I really wanna lose 20 pounds because I wanna
Speaker:feel better physically and mentally so that I can start having the experiences
Speaker:in life that I've always wanted to do, such as traveling hiking or just being
Speaker:. Highly active with your friends and family, whatever that might be, right?
Speaker:Your vision should be much broader and in a much larger context than simply
Speaker:thinking, oh, I wanna lose 20 pounds.
Speaker:There's a why that's behind that.
Speaker:There's a reason for that, and it's because you have a larger
Speaker:vision about yourself or in this case, about your business.
Speaker:And so, Really making sure that those vision, that those values,
Speaker:excuse me, are aligned with your vision is really, really important.
Speaker:'cause that's gonna help you go down the right path.
Speaker:So, back to where I had started when I would had said that I asked
Speaker:in the Monday mindset for you to spend a few minutes every day and
Speaker:really think about your vision for yourself in your largest context.
Speaker:So if you were to take just a moment and just maybe even close your eyes
Speaker:for just a moment and really think about where you want your life and
Speaker:your business to be in five years.
Speaker:Visualize the success that you have, the impact that you're making and the journey.
Speaker:And then think about . Let's say three values that help guide you
Speaker:to that vision, the values that help guide you to that success.
Speaker:I'm curious if you're in the group, I'm super curious what some of the
Speaker:values are that you came up with.
Speaker:Go ahead and share 'em in the chat, if you would, and then I think sharing
Speaker:that information is super helpful to others in the community as well.
Speaker:And I'm kind of curious to see what kind of values drive you in your
Speaker:business and what kind of values are driving people in our community.
Speaker:Another way, if you're struggling to think, well, I have so many goals
Speaker:that I'm considering right now.
Speaker:It's difficult for me to.
Speaker:Envision a much larger vision in a much larger context for myself.
Speaker:'cause right now all I can think about is you know, I wanna have this
Speaker:amount of money in my bank account, or I wanna make this amount of revenue
Speaker:in my business in this quarter,
Speaker:or here are the here's the goals that I have in, in all these
Speaker:different areas of my life.
Speaker:This is where I really would encourage you to sit down and visualize how you
Speaker:picture yourself in a larger context.
Speaker:Not just necessarily what you're doing, but who you're being.
Speaker:Who is it that ? Is in this larger vision of yourself.
Speaker:I think oftentimes we can really get caught up in the various roles that we
Speaker:may play in our lives, such as mother, daughter, sister, wife, employee And,
Speaker:and shoot even as an employee, right?
Speaker:Like you were given a title and then sometimes we even try and
Speaker:attach that title to ourselves and think, oh, well this is who I am.
Speaker:But I'm asking you to think well beyond that, who are you when you're not a mom?
Speaker:'cause you're not just a mom, you're not just all these roles that you're playing.
Speaker:There is a person there.
Speaker:And in your vision, I want you to really think about who you're being,
Speaker:and then you can kind of integrate, okay, well, what are some of the
Speaker:things that I am doing when I think about my highest version of self?
Speaker:And I think about that in the largest context possible.
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:. So I've kind of rambled on a little bit about how to think about that vision,
Speaker:but this is so important because there's going to be times where you're going
Speaker:to come across things in your life or your business, and you don't wanna
Speaker:fall victim again to heading down a path that frankly is not your path.
Speaker:It's somebody else's path, and they're just trying to get you to go down
Speaker:that, you know, I've come across.
Speaker:so many people in my life who really use these values and vision
Speaker:in their businesses, that kind of helps guide them as well.
Speaker:Like even when I think about my my gym owner, you know, it's really important
Speaker:to him that he's not just helping you with your fitness, but that he's
Speaker:Helping to motivate you and helping to see all that you're capable of.
Speaker:Not just whether or not you've lost the weight, but how much more confident
Speaker:you feel and how much more confident you , how much more confident you
Speaker:are in your life and using that to create the life that you really want.
Speaker:That's so important to him.
Speaker:And, and probably how I ended up finding this gym and becoming a part
Speaker:of this gym community because obviously the, that's a type of value that I
Speaker:hold very personal to me as well.
Speaker:This isn't just about business.
Speaker:I truly believe that we should be creating the life that we really want.
Speaker:And then incorporating our business into that.
Speaker:And it's so important to me that others get to feel what it feels
Speaker:like to really live for the dash.
Speaker:If you haven't heard that phrase before, it's felt the dash in between
Speaker:the dates on your tombstone, right?
Speaker:Like, I don't, I don't wanna just live.
Speaker:For the end date, I wanna live all the things in between.
Speaker:And that's so important to me.
Speaker:And so I take that into consideration when I'm thinking about my business.
Speaker:If you caught a couple podcast episodes ago, one of the things that I talked
Speaker:about when I was talking about focus, I gave an example of an opportunity
Speaker:that I had to maybe get back.
Speaker:Into the boutique business, but I had to really stop for a little
Speaker:bit and ask myself, okay, hold on.
Speaker:Is something that is a strong brick and mortar, something that I wanna get into
Speaker:right now, is that helping me to my largest vision and allowing me to live
Speaker:the life that I ultimately wanna live.
Speaker:So it's important that you really have clarity on yourself
Speaker:of what your bigger vision is.
Speaker:In that case, my answer was no.
Speaker:This doesn't fit into this larger vision that I have for myself.
Speaker:And because integrity is so important to me, there was no way that I wanted to say
Speaker:. Yes, I'm going to start this business only to figure out halfway through that.
Speaker:It really wasn't for me because it really didn't align with
Speaker:the larger vision that I had.
Speaker:So it's super important that we understand this.
Speaker:I think my biggest piece of advice for you today as you're listening to this,
Speaker:is to really think about and consider . What your own V values are and how they
Speaker:align with your business vision, right?
Speaker:How do you, how are you aligning these values that you can
Speaker:see you have in your life?
Speaker:How does that align with your business?
Speaker:Because they should align.
Speaker:And so the combination of those . Values and the vision that you have is what's
Speaker:gonna help set you apart and really help elevate you and pave the way for
Speaker:a much longer term success instead of like the example I just gave, instead
Speaker:of finding yourself kicking off.
Speaker:Something else in your business or a whole new business concept altogether
Speaker:only to realize, wait, while this is fun and this was enticing, this
Speaker:doesn't fit into my larger vision.
Speaker:So really, really reflect on what are the values that you hold near and dear to you.
Speaker:And where did this that fit into your, to your vision?
Speaker:All right.
Speaker:Well, if you've joined today, I just wanna say thank you.
Speaker:I am so glad that you were able to join and I hope that some
Speaker:of this resonated with you.
Speaker:If you're in the group, I'm super curious.
Speaker:Tell me.
Speaker:What is part of your bigger vision of yourself or your business?
Speaker:Is it that you're traveling the world speaking on stages or that
Speaker:maybe you don't want that all.
Speaker:Maybe you do wanna build your brick and mortar out.
Speaker:What is it?
Speaker:What's this bigger vision that you have?
Speaker:Is it making an impact?
Speaker:Is it making an impact in the world around you with others?
Speaker:I would love to know, so please share.
Speaker:. And of course, if you're not already in the Facebook group, get over here.
Speaker:We would love to have you.
Speaker:And until next time, keep making shift happen.
Speaker:Bye.
