Communicating Your Core Values
The more important the communication, the more important the clarity.
– Patrick Lencioni
The leadership team believed in their values.
They had taken the time to create them. They talked about them often.
One value, in particular, was frequently referenced, despite never being clearly defined:
Growth Mindset.
One leader used the label to push the organization forward: bigger goals, higher standards, faster execution.
Another leader used the same label to describe something different entirely: learning, reflection, and professional development. Coaching people to slow down, build new skills, and grow into stronger contributors.
One employee took it in a completely different direction altogether. To them, Growth Mindset meant personal growth: pursuing new interests, broadening perspectives, becoming more worldly. Valuable pursuits, but largely disconnected from their role, responsibilities, or performance at work.
All were sincere.
All believed deeply in the value.
All used the same label.
Everyone believed they were reinforcing the company’s values.
No one realized they were reinforcing completely different behaviors.
The consequences showed up in performance reviews.
In one review, a manager praised an employee for demonstrating Growth Mindset by aggressively pushing ambitious targets. In another review at the same company, a different manager praised someone else for the exact opposite, slowing down to learn and develop rather than chasing results.
Values-based feedback had become arbitrary. Expectations shifted depending on who you reported to. And when the company tried to build culture around its values, through hiring, reviews, and recognition, the system quietly broke down.
This wasn’t a Growth Mindset problem.
It was a communication problem.
What a Core Value Actually Is
Most leadership teams misunderstand what a core value actually is.
A core value is not the word you choose.
It’s the behavior the word represents.
Every core value has two parts:
The label
The explanation
The label is simply a name. It’s a shorthand reference. A handle leaders and teams can use in conversation.
The explanation is the value.
It defines the behaviors you expect. It draws the line between what is acceptable and what is not. It’s what allows people to make decisions, give feedback, and hold each other accountable using the same standard.
When teams stop at the label, they assume shared meaning where none exists.
It’s the same pattern we see with titles. A clean label creates the illusion of clarity, even when expectations are completely misaligned.
That assumption is what creates confusion.
Without a clear explanation, values don’t guide behavior. They invite interpretation.
Once that happens, leaders lose the ability to reinforce the value consistently or fairly.
Hiring becomes subjective.
Performance reviews feel inconsistent.
Recognition rewards different things depending on who is doing the evaluating.
Not because leaders lack discipline.
But because the standard itself was never defined.
The simplest test is this:
If you asked three people in your organization to explain what one of your core values actually means in practice, would you get the same answer?
If not, the value isn’t failing.
The communication is.
How to Clearly Explain Each Core Value
Once you understand that a core value is a behavior, not a label, the work becomes specific.
The question is no longer what are our values, but:
How do we explain each value clearly enough that people use it the same way?
Clear explanation is what turns values from words into standards. In practice, it comes down to a few disciplines.
Translate the Value Into Observable Behavior
Every value must be explained in terms of behavior.
Not traits.
Not intentions.
Not personality characteristics.
Behavior.
What does this value look like in action? What does it require people to do, and what does it prohibit?
If someone cannot point to a real situation and say, “That’s an example of this value,” then the value is not explained clearly enough.
Use Bullets
Bullets force clarity. Each value should be explained using three to five bullet points, enough to surface the specific behaviors that matter without asking people to memorize exact language.
What can bullets include?
A plain-language definition
A concrete example
A short story
An analogy
Each bullet serves a different purpose.
The goal is not precision in wording. The goal is consistency in understanding.
Bullets make it easier for leaders to talk about the value in their own voice while still reinforcing the same expectations.
You don’t need to share the full explanation every time you reference your values. Once people understand what each value means, the label becomes useful shorthand. It’s enough on walls, in presentations, and in vision documents.
But the explanation must remain accessible. Think of it as a reference guide leaders use during onboarding, performance reviews, and coaching conversations to reinforce the same expectations consistently.
The goal is shared understanding, not memorization. When that’s in place, the label does its job.
Make Each Value Distinct
Every value should clarify a different expectation.
If two values overlap in their explanations, confusion is guaranteed.
People will not know which value applies. Leaders will reinforce different things. Feedback will become inconsistent.
If a value sounds similar to another value once it is explained, that is a signal. Something needs to be clarified, separated, or simplified.
Clear values do not compete with each other.
They complement each other.
When each value is distinct and clearly explained, people stop guessing and start acting with confidence.
An Example: When the Label Doesn’t Matter
At the first company where we truly established clear and effective core values, we had a core value called Rockin.
On its own, the label was meaningless. It wasn’t aspirational. It wasn’t descriptive. It certainly wasn’t self-explanatory.
That was intentional.
Rock and roll was woven throughout the company. Conference rooms were named after local bands. Our State of the Company meeting was the Rockin Rally. The theme was consistent, which made the label fit. But the label still wasn’t the point.
The value only worked because of how it was explained.
We used a simple analogy. Think about a band coming on stage. The lights go down. The bass drum hits. The guitars and keys come in. Then the singer. Everyone plays their part in perfect sync.
And then the audience joins in. Singing together. Moving together. Fully engaged.
That was the picture.
Rockin was teamwork in practice. Not a vague ideal, but specific behaviors. People knowing their role. Trusting others to do theirs. Showing up prepared. Playing together in harmony. Creating something together that no one could create on their own. Teammates, leaders, vendors, partners, and clients aligned and pulling in the same direction.
We didn’t explain it with paragraphs. We explained it with a few clear points people could remember and repeat.
Rockin
Picture a rock concert. The band plays in perfect sync, then the audience joins in. Everyone is engaged, creating something together no one could create alone.
Know your role, trust others to do theirs, and show up prepared.
Employees, partners, vendors, and clients working in harmony.
What mattered wasn’t the word.
It was the shared meaning behind it.
Once established, “Rockin” started showing up naturally in conversations. People called it out when they saw it. They’d say, “That was Rockin.”
A value doesn’t become powerful when you find the perfect word.
It becomes powerful when everyone shares the same understanding of the behavior behind it.
Additional Examples
Below are two examples of how leadership teams have clearly defined and explained their core values - complete with labels and behavioral bullets. They're meant as reference, not templates. Use them to pressure-test your own approach. Thank you to Laney LA and SessionGuru for allowing me to share these publicly.
What Your Values Are Teaching Today
Every organization is teaching its values every day.
Not through posters or decks, but through what gets reinforced, rewarded, and tolerated.
When values are unclear, people don’t disengage. They fill in the gaps. Each in their own way. Culture becomes accidental, not intentional.
The question isn’t whether you have values.
The question is whether the people in your organization understand them the same way you do.
If they don’t, the work isn’t to find new words.
It’s to clearly explain the ones you already have.
Footnotes & Sources
Patrick Lencioni, The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business (2012).
Laney LA, Core Values Explained (2026), used with permission.
SessionGuru, Core Values Explained (2026), used with permission.
