Values are beliefs about what is fundamentally important. They affect your decision making and your behaviors, whether you are conscious of them or not. Your real values are reflected by your behavior, and if your espoused values are not consistent with your behavior, you will lose credibility and trust.

The same is true for teams. When a team identifies and commits to living shared values, there is a deeper level of trust, better problem-solving, and increased collaboration.

Team values are more than just a collection of the values of individual team members. Team values are reflected by the general pattern of behaviors of team members. They might not be explicitly stated, but it is possible to observe the general norms of behaviors to tell what the values are. Are people respectful toward each other? Do they push boundaries, or are they conventional? Do they avoid conflict, or is conflict surfaced and addressed?

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