Over the past months, I’ve had to make some relatively big decisions regarding my work. I decided, for example, to focus on taking more control over my content through self-publishing and developing my own websites, including this one. Ultimately, the decisions I’ve made are intended to allow a reallocation of my time so that I can focus on creating longer works, particularly in Christian non-fiction. I will continue to decide how to adjust as I run into wins or hurdles.
This kind of pragmatic decision-making is standard for professionals and their organizations. We know that if we don’t plan and strategize, our ability to compete typically goes down.
But have you deliberately decided in advance what you will do around your core values?
You might know what you’ll do if your profits drop 5 percent. But what will you do if someone pushes you to cheat? Gossip about a coworker? Dump your waste in the ocean? Lie? Be quiet about your faith in God?
Choosing what to logistically do ahead of time is smart. But choosing what to do ethically and morally ahead of time is wisdom.
Why predetermination around your values matters
A lack of planning, strategy, and decision-making about what to do or how to do it is detrimental because it’s paralyzing. Progress stops. But as Craig Groeschel has shared, a lack of predetermination about what you will continue to believe in and steward is dangerous because it can allow you to conform to the world and lose the reality of who you are as a servant of God.
3 ways to stay grounded when the world wants you to give in
It can be easy to cross ethical or moral boundaries when our human need to fit in and experience care kicks in. You might think that, if you don’t compromise, others aren’t going to understand you’re a team player and you’ll lose opportunities. But the reason boundaries have power is because you don’t cross them, and integrity loses its salt every time you hop over the line.
I also get that you might not want conflict, especially if, like me, you grew up eating that every day for breakfast. But you can predetermine what you will ethically and morally do and proceed in a way that doesn’t create unnecessary tension.
1. Offer an invitation
It’s tempting to lapse into rebuke mode when others aren’t doing the right thing. But you don’t have to be harsh as you teach. The best teacher is often evidence — that is, seeing the result you get. So, invite people to look at what what happens when you don’t cross your ethical and moral boundaries. They can decide for themselves whether to change their minds and follow your lead after that.
2. Focus on the larger, positive goal
Simply telling someone you won’t do what they do because it’s “wrong” can turn personal quickly. It devolves into being about the individuals involved rather than the values at stake. That increases the risk of people getting defensive and refusing to hear you out. What do you believe holding to your beliefs will do, not just for you, but for others? What do you want to build that they can be part of with you? Hone in on the vision so that you can find the common ground you and the others have inside of it.
3. Be inclusive in your celebration and praise
People don’t have to come to a party. But everybody likes to at least be invited. So, as you allow others to explore the evidence that proves your ethics and morals yield positive gains, welcome them to share in your joy. Let them know that the door is open for them to join you at any time, rather than acting like all they deserve for their beliefs or behaviors is isolation. Remember — it’s harder for people to cross over to belief in God if the messenger burns the bridge.
Through your modeling, others can see Who He is
I believe our understanding of what counts and deserves defense improves as God reveals truth to us. He can also call you to do different things at different points in your life. That means you might come to change your priorities over time without abandoning His full character. But choosing in advance to maintain integrity within however much God has shown you will help ensure that you are a model of Him to others. If you want to be loving and save other people, there’s no better way to do it than that.