SEO Buyers' Guide: Learn Why This is the Best Way to Grow Your Business Read More...

  • Home
  • Services
    • Digital Marketing
      • Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
      • Local SEO
      • Technical SEO
      • Digital Marketing Strategy
      • Pay Per Click (PPC) Marketing
      • Link Building Services
      • HARO Link Building
      • Google Analytics Service
      • Conversion Rate Optimization Services
      • White Label Services
      • Franchise SEO
      • Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
    • Web Design
      • Custom Website Design
      • WordPress Website Design
      • eCommerce Web Design
      • ADA Compliance Services
      • Video Production
      • Video Testimonial Services
      • Product Photography Services
      • Drone Video and Photography Services
      • Email Marketing Services
      • SMS Marketing Services
      • Website Hosting
      • SEO Content Writing Services
    • Social Media Marketing
      • Social Media Management
      • Social Media Advertising
      • Social Media Brand Management
      • Reputation Management
        • Reputation Management Software
        • Online Reputation Repair
        • Franchise Reputation Management
        • Social Media Reputation Management
    • eCommerce Marketing
      • eCommerce Optimization
      • eCommerce SEO
      • eCommerce PPC
      • Shopify Web Design
      • Shopify SEO
      • Walmart Marketplace
      • Target Plus Marketplace
      • Amazon Marketing
        • Amazon SEO
        • Amazon Advertising/PPC
        • Amazon Storefront & Branding
        • Amazon Seller Consulting
        • Amazon Posts Management
        • Amazon DSP Advertising Management
  • Work
    • Case Studies
    • Web Designs
    • Logo Designs
    • Video
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Why Choose Us?
    • Awards & Recognition
    • Thrive Gives Back
    • SEO Code of Ethics
    • Client Testimonials
    • Industries We Serve
    • Media & Press Information
    • Thrive Camp Awards
  • Learn
    • Blog
    • Thrive Growth Formula
    • Franchise Marketing Guide
    • SEO Buyers’ Guide
    • Google Page Experience Guide
  • Careers
  • Contact
866-908-4748

GET PROPOSAL

Life lessons to choose company core values
Give ‘Mommy Airplane’ and my wife credit: Life lessons on how to choose your company core values

Jul 01, 2019 by Matt Bowman | Leave a Comment

JOIN OVER 3,000

Subscribers who get fresh content to help their business weekly.

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Search

Categories

Sometimes your core values are tested at inconvenient times. But they wouldn’t be called “core” values if you didn’t take them seriously.

One of those inopportune times popped up recently for me right in the middle of a very important client meeting.

On the verge of landing a large client at Thrive Internet Marketing Agency, I was abruptly asked, “So, who do I call if my website goes down at 2 a.m. on a Saturday?”

“You call me,” I quickly replied.

Then I filled in the client on how I prioritize a proper work-life balance at Thrive. I rarely contact any of my work friends after they finish their days at 5:30 each evening, much less bugging them with a late-night weekend call.

Sure, I could have made the client feel better by saying that you can call any of us. But that would have flown in the face of one of my core beliefs.

A few days later during a team lunch, one of my work friends who was a part of that important meeting – unbeknownst to me at the time – shared the story over some chicken strips and rolls.

“I’ve never been prouder to work for Thrive,” he said. “I’ve never been prouder of Matt.”

‘Relationships matter. People matter.’

The memory is almost 30 years old now. But it still resonates to my core.

The setting is a Target store, where one of my elementary school teachers was shopping that day.

It was one of those moments where you see your teacher outside of school and you just freeze. My mother told me to go over and say hello. But I was shy and refused.

My mother grabbed my shoulders, looked me in the eye and delivered some advice that’s never left me:

“Matt, relationships matter. People matter. You need to go say hello to your teacher.”

That’s now engrained in my business at Thrive. Relationships matter is one of our core values.

Why it’s important for a business to establish core values

Establishing your company’s core values should be a priority for any business. It should be one of your first steps.

How an organization thinks, behaves and makes critical decisions should be the bedrock of your business.

A business’ culture defines an organization’s value and establishes trust with your clients and target audience. Setting strong core values will build loyalty both internally and externally, further promoting your brand.

Once established, core values should be visible at every turn for a company, not only a content page for your website but also a fixture on your walls. From sales and marketing to internal reviews, make your core values a mainstay and part of your business formula. Make sure your employees are well aware of your core values and then make sure they’re living up to them.

Don’t sweat the responsibility of choosing core values

Coming up with core values for your business shouldn’t be challenging. Just think about how you want to be treated and your own values.

Thrive’s culture and values were shaped by my parents and my wife.

I grew up in a positive atmosphere around parents who rarely argued or raised their voice. When starting my business, I knew it would be vital to establish positivity.

As the business owner, however, you must set the tone. Creating strong core values for a company is essential, but it can’t just be lip service either. As the business owner, you have to walk the walk and not just talk the talk.

Be present, greet others with a smile and a hello and find a specific example of someone’s work you can compliment. Encouraging others should always be a priority for any business owner.

One of my strengths is as an idea generator. Give me a dry eraser board and I’ll fill it up with new ideas. But what if I didn’t listen to the ideas of others? What if I didn’t value others’ opinions?

Well, that’d make me a hypocrite and cause me to lose respect with my peers.

Integrity matters at every turn

Another core principle at Thrive is we value integrity. We believe in honesty, integrity and a sincere heart for others when doing business.

We don’t sell you a service you won’t need. We won’t lie to get your business. It’s all about treating people with kindness and respect.

Your customers are smart. They didn’t become business owners by accident. If you sell them something they don’t need they’ll know soon enough, and your churn rate will suffer. They won’t be back.

Be smart, too, and build trust.

After all, how could Thrive stress the importance of online reputation management to companies if our reputation wasn’t on point?

If your company’s core values aren’t providing a proper foundation and structure for your business, maybe it’s time to look in the mirror. Are you practicing what you preach?

More about maintaining a healthy work-life balance

Now back to my mother, who also helped shape one of our values that define our culture of promoting a proper work-life balance.

When I was a young boy, I started calling my mother “Mommy Airplane” because she often flew to other cities to meet with clients for her software business that my uncle was a part of as well.

She quickly realized she didn’t like the tag of “Mommy Airplane.” She told my uncle something had to change. She could no longer travel as much.

My parents are a part of the American culture that would bring work home with them. They worked long hours.

That was my path as well. When starting my business, I worked all the time. I rarely slept, wanting to get the job done to keep the clients happy.

But that didn’t work well for my wife. You see, she grew up in an entirely different culture in Germany. It’s one of the global leaders in domestic products exported, but Germans also know how to unplug. Go to my wife’s hometown in Germany on a Sunday and almost every business is closed.

My wife and I had this ongoing discussion when I started my business in 2005 about how much I was working. Well, let’s call it more of a negotiation.

She did not support me being a workaholic. One time she told me she’d rather us be poor and happy than have a successful business but we lose our relationship. In short, she said the money wasn’t as important as our marriage.

That caught my attention – and is even more relevant today with our fourth child on the way in July – and helped shape our policy of not taking work home with you. Our employees will tell you, it’s rare for one of them to receive a call or even an email after workhours.

Just the other day, one of our employees was stretching himself too thin and working after hours. I called him on a Friday.

“Man, I appreciate your effort,” I told him, “but I don’t want you living here at the office when your wife kicks you out of your house.”

He’s married with kids. I told him it’s more important to be home with his family.

Recently, during one of our monthly meetings, I stressed that “Healthy people make up a healthy company,” urging everyone to make sure they’re making human connections outside of work and getting enough sleep.

Don’t view them as your employees; call them friends

A big part of what drives me every morning is that I really care about our team.

It’s funny, my young kids know that Thrive is my business. But they don’t really understand the concept that I’m the boss.

At my home, everyone at the office are referred to as “my work friends.” I don’t call them my employees at home with my kids.

My son will say, “Daddy, what was that guy’s name who was one of your work friends?”

But that’s how I view it. I see everyone who works at Thrive as friends and not employees. That helps me align our core values and build the right culture.

Many Americans grow up in homes where work is a dreaded part of their life. You know, this type of viewpoint: “Man, as long as I can make it to the weekend.”

Ultimately, I want my kids to see work as a positive experience.

I want to enjoy my workweek and my weekend.

Why not have both?

Share
Tweet
Pin
Share

Filed Under: Online Marketing, Small Business, Local Online Marketing, Branding

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Matt Bowman

About Matt Bowman

Matt is a Husband, father and 5th generation business owner. Matt loves helping others and seeing things grow. He is the President and Founder of Thrive Internet Marketing Agency. Thrive is a top-10-rated SEO agency, Google Premier Partner and Inc 5000 fastest growing company in the US. The team at Thrive is passionate about using the power of the Internet to help businesses grow. For every new client we work with, Thrive gives a micro-loan to another striving entrepreneur through Kiva.org.

  • More Posts (4)

More Related Posts

  • 5 Ways Social Media Is More Than Just Marketing 5 Ways Social Media Is More Than Just Marketing For marketers, social media represents a powerful distribution tool. In addition to making it easy to push content through to followers, it also offers a high potential for co...
  • How to Create Brand Style Guidelines and Why It’s Important1280x720_011720 How To Create Brand Style Guidelines and Why It’s Important What do Coca-Cola, Starbucks, Nike and Apple have in common? These brands have all invested heavily in building and maintaining solid brand identities. Coca-Cola is known for it...
  • What Are SERPs and Why Should You Care About Your Rankings1280x720_011720 What Are SERPs and Why Should You Care About Your Rankings? When someone searches on Google, Yahoo!, Bing or other search engines, it will display a page containing all the web links relevant to the query. This page is called a search engin...

Thrive Internet Marketing Agency is a full-service digital marketing agency. Attract, Impress, and Convert more leads online and get results with Thrive.

CALL 866.908.4748

Contact UsThrive Gives Back

growing businesses since 2005

Made with in 25 cities around the world

  • ARLINGTON
  • ATLANTA
  • AUSTIN
  • BALTIMORE
  • CHICAGO
  • CLEVELAND
  • DALLAS
  • DENVER
  • HOUSTON
  • JACKSONVILLE
  • KANSAS CITY
  • LAS VEGAS
  • LOS ANGELES
  • LOUISVILLE
  • NEW YORK CITY
  • MIAMI
  • MINNEAPOLIS
  • PHOENIX
  • NEW ORLEANS
  • ORLANDO
  • PHILADELPHIA
  • PORTLAND
  • SAN ANTONIO
  • SAN DIEGO
  • SEATTLE

© 2023 - Thrive Internet Marketing Agency / Locations / Write For Us / Refer Thrive / Terms / Privacy Policy / Scam Alert / Sitemap