Walk the talk.

As we set ourselves up for success in 2023, remember this: you’ve got to walk the talk.

It’s true in our workplace and it’s true in yours, wherever that may be. The time for platitudes is over. It’s time to live your values.

Authenticity is increasingly demanded by business owners, employees and – perhaps most importantly – clients. No longer do the vision, mission and values of an organisation live hidden, existing only to be fleetingly referred to in employee inductions and occasionally in a CEO’s address.

Today, we want to work how we live. With intent and purpose.

People no longer seek a job – they want to be part of something that matters to them, they want to be inspired. Entrepreneurs aren’t driving get rich quick schemes, they are solving problems, overcoming barriers, creating a better world. Business owners aren’t planning the next big acquisition, they are partnering with their people to create a space – not just a workplace – where you can bring your whole self to work and be valued for your knowledge, your experiences and your differing perspectives.

Sure, these are broad generalisations and there’s not evidence of person-centred, values-driven work in every workplace, but things are changing. Look at 100% Human at Work; Dr Adam Fraser’s work on The Third Space; the work done by Circle In to support care-giving employees at every life stage; Cherie’s celebration of her staff and ways The Digital Picnic makes the workplace work for them. There’s more examples, but here’s the key takeaway: the winds of change are blowing and our workplaces are and will be better for it.

At the heart of it all is an alignment of values. People who know what they value and actively demonstrate those values every day, in everything they do, including their work.

At Factotum Communications, we have recently set our values. As a team, we’ve talked through why we value what we value and how best to live those values in our work. We’ve established how we will use our values to guide our decision making in everything from recruitment to project management. Our values are being shared on our socials, on our website, in our on-boarding documents for new talent and new clients. We are putting our values everywhere, so there’s nowhere to hide. It’s time to live our values.

The test now is to do it.

Here’s to 2023 and living our values.