by Monica Davidson

Running a creative business, whether you’re an early stage freelancer or a more experienced arts company, means exploring amazing and diverse options both within and without. Your brain is probably buzzing with a hundred different ideas, and your professional world is a vibrant tapestry of opportunities and challenges. In this ever-evolving landscape, how can you better understand which direction to pursue, what type of audience to attract, and where your boundaries might lie?

The answer to all of these important questions can be found in your core values. These are your fundamental beliefs, the non-negotiable personal and professional rules that guide your decisions, shape your brand identity, and ultimately set you apart from your peers. Core values are more than just a feel-good notion; they’re a strategic advantage. 

Choosing Your Values

Choosing your core values is an introspective adventure. Sometimes it helps to consult a list, like these ones from James Clear, and then decide which five are your most important and least negotiable. The work comes in the choosing, as narrowing down a long list of meaningful attributes is tricky. 

One helpful question is this – if I were to give you a million dollars to violate that core value, would you? If the answer is yes, then it’s time to keep looking for those non-negotiables. I absolutely value creativity, but I would happily take a million dollars to be less innovative. A million dollars to give up my family, on the other hand? Not a chance. 

The House Rules

Your choice of five core values can then be turned into a set of house rules that outline how those values will be implemented. The House Rules help you, and others, to understand which behaviours are acceptable, and others are not.

For example, if one of your core values is sustainability, the House Rules accompanying that value could be going paperless where possible, using renewable energy sources at home and in the studio, signing up to a carbon offsetting program, and reusing and recycling where possible. 

House rules act as a clear roadmap for you, and others, to ensure that your core values are both declared ideals and accountable actions.

Empowering Your Decisions

Internally, core values can help you navigate the complexities of the professional creative process. Knowing your own rules can help guide you through all the different decisions you have to make, from what type of work to seek out to the ways you’ll spend your money to the types of marketing messages you’ll share. 

Having a strong value system acts as your compass. When faced with a difficult choice, your values will help pull you towards the path that aligns with your long-term goals and vision for your creative business.

Authenticity Equals Trust

Your core values are essential to your creative identity, whether you’re an individual sole trader or part of a larger organisation. They define the work you’re passionate about creating and the messages you want to convey. When your creative expression and professional approach aligns with your core principles, you will be effortlessly authentic. This cuts through the noise and resonates with audiences who are seeking genuine connections. 

Being authentically yourself, with clearly defined core values and accompanying house rules, is a meaningful way to establish trust with anyone who wants to connect professionally to your business. 

Finding Your Audience

Clearly declared core values can also help to act as a beacon, attracting clients and collaborators who resonate with your principles. By clearly communicating your beliefs, you can cultivate a community around your brand. That can extend beyond customers and clients to your wider audience, patrons, philanthropic supporters and even funding bodies. Finding those who share your passion and purpose builds stronger and more meaningful relationships with anyone who intersects with your professional work.

The Heartbeat of Collaboration

Finally, shared core values help you find the people to work with you. Creative collaborators, volunteers, freelancers, even staff can be inspired by the same principles. Core values and house rules foster a sense of trust, purpose, and mutual respect, which in turn help your people to feel empowered to contribute their unique talents towards a shared vision.

For some follow-up reading, check out our blog about the important of values-based branding here.